BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel has praised Panama's response to the offshore accounts scandal that followed leaks of documents from a Panamanian law firm.

Following a meeting with Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela Tuesday, Merkel says "Panama has taken the right steps" but that it needs to "deal clearly" with the past in order to regain trust.

Merkel backed Panama's intention to apply the financial transparency standards of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

She said negotiations on an information-sharing agreement between the two countries that started in July should be completed by early 2017.

Panama was at the heart of an international storm earlier this year when leaked documents from the Mossack Fonseca law firm exposed the tax-evading practices of wealthy clients around the world.