Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday denied the U.S. State Department’s claim that his country had agreed to allow U.S. government vessels to transit the Panama Canal for free, an assertion that has upended the two countries’ talks on the waterway.

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday denied the U.S. State Department’s claim that his country had reached a deal allowing U.S. warships to transit the Panama Canal for free. Mulino said he had told U.

Panama denied a claim made by the State Department on Wednesday that the Central American nation had agreed to no longer charge fees for US government ships to transit the country’s famous canal.