President Martinelli will start his official Asia tour on Friday, October 15 to sign double taxation treaties.
The eight-day tour will stop in Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, according to Vice President Juan Carlos Varela, who will be traveling with the president.
“This is President Martinelli’s first trip to Asia,” Varela said.
This is also Martinelli’s 25th trip since taking office in July 2009. Other places visited in the last year and three months include Costa Rica, Arkansas, El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia, Switzerland, Israel, Qatar, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Greece and Peru.
In somewhat related news, Panama has signed seven of the 12 double taxation treaties needed to get off the OECD grey list of fiscal paradises. The last three treaties were signed with Spain, Holland and Luxembourg. And, if the math is correct, Panama will only need to sign two more treaties after the Asia tour is complete.