Trump threatens to take back Panama Canal over ‘ridiculous’ fees | Donald Trump

Donald Trump has demanded that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States if Panama did not manage the waterway in a way that was acceptable to him – and he accused the Central American country of charging exorbitant fees for use of the sea link. .

“The fees charged by Panama are ridiculous, especially given the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed upon Panama by the United States of America,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform late Saturday, a little more than a month before the start of his second term. American presidency. . “This complete ‘unmasking’ of our country will immediately stop. . . .”

In the evening post, Trump also warned that he would not let the channel fall into the “wrong hands”. And he appeared to warn of potential Chinese influence on the passage, writing the channel should not be administered by China.

Trump said the Panama Canal was a “vital national asset” for the United States, calling it “vital” to trade and national security.

The warning comes a few days after Trump mused in an early morning thought explosion that Canadians might want Canada to become America’s 51st state, mocking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “Governor Trudeau.”

Trump’s Panama thinking underscores an expected shift in US diplomacy after he takes office in January, particularly on China and European security. On Friday, The Financial Times writes that Trump’s team had told European officials that he will demand that NATO member states increase defense spending to 5% of their GDP.

However, Trump’s rhetorical threat to Panama comes 25 years after the United States handed full control of the canal to Panama after a period of joint administration.

In 1977, President Jimmy Carter negotiated the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which gave Panama control of the canal, and the Neutrality Treaty, which allowed the United States to defend the canal’s neutrality. The canal is currently managed by the Panama Canal Authority.

The United States completed the 51-mile canal through the Central American Isthmus in 1914 and remains the canal’s largest customer, responsible for about three-quarters of the cargo that passes through each year.

China is the canal’s second largest customer, and a Chinese company based in Hong Kong controls two of the five ports adjacent to the canal, one on each side.

But a prolonged drought has hampered the canal’s ability to move ships between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard said last week that shipping disruptions were contributing to supply chain pressures.

The Panama Canal has seen a 29% drop in ship transit over the past fiscal year due to severe drought conditions, according to the canal authority. From October 2023 to September 2024, only 9,944 vessels passed through the canal, compared to 14,080 the previous year.

In his post, Trump suggested the canal was in danger of falling into the wrong hands, saying the canal is not China’s to manage.

“It was not given for the benefit of others, but simply as a sign of cooperation with us and Panama,” Trump said.

“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full and without question. To the officials of Panama, please be guided accordingly! “

An official of the Government of Panama told Bloomberg late Saturday that he was aware of Trump’s statement and that a formal response would be forthcoming in the coming days.

Last month, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega unveiled plans for a 276.5-mile (445 km) interoceanic waterway that would provide an alternative to neighboring Panama’s waterway.

In a pitch to Chinese investors at a regional business summit, Ortega said “every day it becomes more complicated to pass through Panama” and said Nicaragua’s canal project could attract Chinese and American investment, noting that the United States had considered building a Nicaraguan channel so far. back as 1854.