Donald Trump's big warning about the Panama Canal amid growing Chinese influence

Washington DC:

The idea of ​​China haunts Donald Trump who worries about Beijing's growing influence just under the tail of the United States – the Panama Canal – a bridge connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean through Panama , strategically located, the country that connects North America and South America.

US President-elect Trump, who is always ready to threaten others with tariffs, is also disturbed by the fact that Panama is imposing “excessive tariffs” for the use of the Panama Canal. He is so destabilized by the combination of these two factors that Mr. Trump has openly stated that the United States might consider taking control of the Panama Canal.

Writing about his concerns on his social media platform Truth Social, Donald Trump warned that he would never let the Panama Canal fall into “the wrong hands”. Reminding the Panama government that the canal was originally built by the United States more than a century ago, Mr. Trump wrote: “It was up to Panama to manage it, not China or anyone else.”

He further reposted a video of himself titled “We would NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands!”

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PANAMA CANAL

Until the beginning of the 20th century, the shortest route to reach the Pacific Ocean from the Atlantic Ocean and vice versa was either to go around Cape Horn, located in Chile, at the southern tip of South America, or to cross the Strait of Magellan, also at the southern end of South America. end of South America – in Chile. Both involved sailing around the entire South American continent and almost reaching Antarctica before going back up to either the Pacific or the Atlantic – this was neither economical nor efficient.

After much thought, research and investigation, a narrow, but possible, path across the Isthmus of Panama was discovered. However, there was a Herculean challenge to achieve this. The waterway was at different levels and there was no way for a ship to go up or down where a sudden change in topography occurred. For the Isthmus waterway to be transformed into an artificial canal would require an engineering marvel – an engineering marvel both inconceivable and unheard of in the early 20th century.

The United States of America was the only country at the time that had the technical knowledge and expertise to achieve this. So, in May 1904 – less than a year after Panama declared its independence from Colombia in November 1903, the United States began construction of the Panama Canal. A treaty was signed between the United States and Panama under which the canal would be built and managed by the United States. After 10 years of around-the-clock engineering work, the Panama Canal became a reality in August 1914, with the SS Ancon becoming the first ship to pass through the canal.

The United States continued to control and operate the canal and its surroundings until a new agreement was signed between Panama and the United States, called the Torrijos-Carter Treaty in 1977. This provided for the handover of the canal in Panama after joint operations for almost two decades. . The Panamanian government took full control of the canal in 1999.

DONALD TRUMP against PANAMANIAN PRESIDENT JOSE MULINO

In addition to warning that the United States would never allow operations of the Panama Canal to be handed over to another country amid China's growing influence and muscular posturing globally, Donald Trump expressed his dissatisfaction with the “very high” tariffs imposed by Panama.

Writing on Truth Social, Mr Trump said: “The fees Panama is charging are ridiculous, especially given the extraordinary generosity extended to Panama by the United States. »

“It was not given for the benefit of others, but simply as a sign of cooperation with us and Panama. If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of donation are not respected, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in their entirety and without question,” Mr. Trump added.

Hours after Donald Trump's warning, the Panamanian government responded, although without naming the president-elect of the United States. The President of Panama, José Raul Mulino, rejected these threats by posting a video on the social media platform .

“The canal is not subject to any direct or indirect control of China, nor of the European Union, nor of the United States or any other power,” President Mulino said, adding that “as a Panamanian , I reject any manifestation which distorts this reality.” His video message was in Spanish.

Message from President Jos Ral Mulino pic.twitter.com/DMXU8qAuNT

Jos Ral Mulino (@JoseRaulMulino) December 22, 2024

President Mulino also said he hopes to maintain “good and respectful relations” with the new Trump administration. Donald Trump responded shortly after the Panamanian president's messages, but left everyone in doubt when he wrote “We'll see about that!”.

Meanwhile, amid the power struggle between the United States and China in terms of military and naval prowess, it is important to note that China now has the largest navy in the world, surpassing the United States. China has a declared fleet of more than 370 ships and submarines. That's significantly larger than the size of the U.S. Navy's fleet, which has 290 ships and submarines.

The Panama Canal is one of the world's most crucial waterways for trade and commerce, and freedom of navigation on the seas is among the democratic world's top priorities and a cornerstone of its policy.

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