Panama’s president hits back at Trump over comments on US takeover

US President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday threatened to restore US control of the Panama Canal and accused Panama of charging excessive tariffs to use the Central American passage – comments that drew a sharp rebuke from Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino.

Speaking to a crowd of supporters in Arizona on Sunday, Trump also said he would not let the canal fall into “the wrong hands” and warned of potential Chinese influence on the passage.

China does not control or manage the canal, but a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings has long managed two ports located at the Caribbean and Pacific entrances to the canal.

The president-elect’s comments came hours after he made a similar threat to Panama in a post on Truth Social on Saturday night.

“Has anyone ever heard of the Panama Canal?” Trump said Sunday at AmericaFest, an annual event organized by Turning Point, an allied conservative group. “Because we’re getting ripped off at the Panama Canal, just like we’re getting ripped off everywhere else.”

Trump’s comments were an extremely rare example of a US leader saying he could pressure a sovereign country to hand over territory.

It also underscores an expected shift in US diplomacy under Trump, who has not historically shied away from threatening allies and using belligerent rhetoric when dealing with adversaries.

“The fees that Panama is charging are ridiculous, very unfair,” Trump said.

“It was given to Panama and the people of Panama, but it has provisions. You have to treat us fairly, and they haven’t treated us fairly.

“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this generous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in its entirety, quickly and without question.”

In a recorded message released by Panamanian leader Mulino on Sunday afternoon, he said that Panama’s independence was not negotiable and that China had no influence on the canal’s administration. He also defended the passage rates Panama charged, saying they were not “on a whim”.

“Every square meter of the Panama Canal and the surrounding area belongs to Panama and will continue to belong to Panama,” Mulino said in the statement, which was posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Several other Panamanian politicians, including members of the opposition, also took to social media to criticize Trump’s statements.

The United States largely built the canal and administered the territory around the passage for decades. But the United States and Panama signed a pair of agreements in 1977 that paved the way for the canal’s return to full Panamanian control. The United States transferred control of the passage in 1999 after a period of joint administration.

The waterway, which allows up to 14,000 ships to cross a year, accounts for 2.5 percent of global seaborne trade and is critical for U.S. imports of automobiles and commercial goods from container ships from Asia and for U.S. exports of commodities, including liquid nature . gas.

It is not clear how Trump would try to regain control of the canal, and he would have no recourse under international law if he decided to make a play for the passage.

This is not the first time that Trump has openly considered territorial expansion.

In recent weeks, he has repeatedly considered making Canada a US state, although it is unclear how serious he is about the matter.

During his first term, Trump expressed interest in buying Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark. He was publicly rejected by Danish authorities before any talks could take place.