CNN
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President-elect Donald Trump suggested over the weekend that the United States should retake the Panama Canal, an idea that was quickly rejected by the Panamanian government, which has controlled the canal for decades.
In social media posts and remarks to supporters, President Trump accused Panama of charging the U.S. “exorbitant fees” for use of the canal, increasing China’s influence over the vital waterway. suggested.
“The fees Panama charges are ludicrous, especially given the extraordinary generosity the United States has given Panama,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.
The U.S.-built canal opened in 1914 and was administered by the U.S. until it was finally handed over to Panama in a 1977 agreement. The canal was operated jointly by both countries until 1999, when the Panamanian government retained full control.
President Trump told a gathering of young conservatives in Phoenix on Sunday that if the spirit of the deal is not followed, “we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States.” Therefore, we ask the Panamanian authorities to provide appropriate guidance. ”
It’s unclear how seriously President Trump takes his threat to take back control of the canal, but this weekend is not the first time he has said negotiations with the United States are raw. The president-elect has not said how he will force sovereign friendly nations to cede their territory.
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And the Panamanian government wants nothing to do with President Trump’s proposal.
“As President, I want to state exactly that every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent areas belongs and will continue to belong to Panama,” President José Raúl Mulino said in a statement on Sunday.
“Our sovereignty and independence are non-negotiable,” he added.
tragic and deadly history
Until the canal is completed, ships traveling between the east and west coasts of the Americas will have to sail around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America, adding thousands of miles and months to their journeys. Ta.
Creating a passageway to shorten that journey was an elusive goal of several empires that had colonies in the Americas.
In the early 20th century, President Theodore Roosevelt made completing the passage a top priority. At the time, the territory was ruled by the Republic of Colombia, but a U.S.-backed rebellion led to the separation of Panama and Colombia in 1903, and the establishment of the Republic of Panama. The United States and the newly established republic signed a treaty that year. This gave the United States control of 16 miles of land on which to build the canal in exchange for the redemption of funds.
The canal, completed in 1914, cemented America’s status as an engineering and technological superpower, but its construction came at a significant human cost. It is estimated that approximately 5,600 people died during the construction of the canal by the United States.
The canal’s utility was demonstrated during World War II, when it was used as an important passageway for the Allied war effort between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. But relations between the United States and Panama gradually disintegrated over disagreements over the management of the canal, the treatment of Panamanian workers, and questions over whether the U.S. and Panamanian flags should be flown jointly in the canal zone.
These tensions peaked on January 9, 1964, when anti-American riots resulted in several deaths in the Canal Zone and a brief severance of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Years of negotiations for a fairer agreement resulted in two agreements during the administration of President Jimmy Carter. The agreement declared the canal neutral and open to all shipping and provided for the United States and Panama to jointly administer the area until the end of 1999, when Panama would be given full control. did.
“Panamanians are dissatisfied with the agreement because we control a 16-mile-wide strip of land that cuts through the center of the country, and we believe that the original terms of the agreement were unfair.” Carter said in his remarks. to the Americans after the treaty was signed. “It was drafted here in our country, it was not signed by Panamanians.”
The then-president added: “Of course, this does not give the United States the right to intervene in Panama’s internal affairs, and U.S. military action will never be directed against Panama’s territorial integrity or political independence.” Ta.
Not everyone supported Carter’s plan. In a 1976 speech, then-presidential candidate Ronald Reagan said that “the people of the United States” were “the rightful owners of the Canal Zone.”
Tensions over the canal flared again in the late 1980s under Manuel Noriega, who was forced from power after the US invaded Panama as part of its “war on drugs.”
Shortly after the Panamanians took full control of the canal in 2000, traffic quickly exceeded the waterway’s capacity. A major expansion project began in 2007 and was completed almost 10 years later.
However, the area surrounding the canal is suffering from severe drought and low water levels are preventing the canal from functioning properly. The canal authority placed restrictions on traffic and imposed high tolls for passage through the canal.
These fees appear to form part of Mr Trump’s issue with the canal. The president-elect on Sunday called them “ridiculous” and “very stupid, but very unfair, especially given the extraordinary generosity that the United States has given Panama.”
Another of President Trump’s claims, that China is seeking to tighten its control over Panama and the Canal Zone, is not without merit. In 2017, Panama signed a joint communiqué stressing that it would not maintain formal relations with Taiwan, an autonomous democracy that China’s ruling Communist Party claims as its territory. Since then, China’s influence in the area surrounding the canal has increased.
Panamanian President Murino responded to President Trump’s comments over the weekend, saying, “Interest rates are not capricious.” He also rejected the idea that China has overt control over the canal.
“The canal is not controlled, directly or indirectly, by China, the European Community, the United States or any other power,” Mulino said in a statement.
President Trump’s comments are the latest example of the president-elect expressing a desire to acquire, or threaten to occupy or violate, territory belonging to a friendly foreign power.
Since the November election, Mr. Trump has provoked Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by suggesting Canada should become the 51st U.S. state.
During his first term, Trump repeatedly floated the idea of the United States buying Greenland from Denmark. The island government says it is “not for sale.”
But Trump doesn’t seem to be deterred. Over the weekend, the president-elect revived the idea while announcing his selection for ambassador to Denmark.
In announcing his selection, President Trump said, “For the purposes of national security and freedom around the world, the United States feels that ownership and control of Greenland is absolutely necessary.”
