President Donald Trump has reaffirmed plans to “take back” the vital waterway
Panama will resist US President Donald Trump’s attempts to reclaim control of the Panama Canal, President Jose Mulino said on Monday, shortly after Trump was sworn in.
“I must wholeheartedly reject the remarks President Donald Trump made in his inaugural speech regarding Panama and its canal,” Mulino said in a statement.
“The administration of the canal will remain under Panamanian control, with respect for its permanent neutrality,” the president said, adding that “no nation in the world” was interfering in the control of the canal.
Mulino argued the US handed over the control of the canal to Panama in 1999 “as the result of a generational struggle.” He vowed to continue to facilitate international trade through the vital waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. “We will exercise the right to protect ourselves,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly argued that the US should reestablish control of the canal to forestall Chinese influence in the region. He has also claimed that Panama overcharges American vessels sailing through the waterway. During his inauguration speech, Trump said that the US will be “taking [the canal] back.”
Trump has pledged to carry out a robust foreign policy based on the ‘America First’ principle. He suggested that the US should annex Greenland and Canada, prompting criticism from officials in both countries
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