The U.S. handed sovereignty of the Panama Canal to that nation decades ago, and President-elect Donald J. Trump on Tuesday refused to rule out using military action to recover it.
Mr. Trump wrongly accused Panama last month of overcharging American ships and letting Chinese forces control the crucial trade channel that links the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Additionally, he has stated that Panama charges American ships “exorbitant prices,” and he has threatened to demand that the United States be given ownership of the canal “in full, quickly, and without question” if these prices are not lowered when he becomes office next month.
Although the reason behind Mr. Trump’s new fixation on the Panama Canal is unknown, some Republicans have long protested a deal that gave Panamanian sovereignty over the trade channel. The slogan “We bought it; we paid for it; we built it” was used to get audiences to stand up when Ronald Reagan declared that the American people were the canal’s “rightful owners” during his presidential campaign.
Who owns the Panama Canal?
The United States eventually constructed the canal between 1904 and 1914 after the French failed to do so. Additionally, the canal was run by the US government for many years.
The United States was also involved in the establishment of the state of Panama. The isthmus of Panama was a part of Colombia at the start of the twentieth century. The U.S. government supported a revolt when Colombia rejected a planned canal pact. The northern regions of Colombia joyfully broke away to establish the Republic of Panama. Then, the US Navy prevented Colombian forces from putting down the uprising.
There were major difficulties with Panama as a result of U.S. sovereignty over the canal. The U.S.-controlled canal zone was the scene of anti-American rioting in 1964.
The Panama Canal treaties were renegotiated as a result of the disturbances. The Torrijos-Carter Treaties were signed in 1977 by Panamanian leader Omar Efraín Torrijos and U.S. President Jimmy Carter. The Panama Canal’s everlasting neutrality was ensured under the accords. The treaties stipulated that the United States would give up control of the canal by the year 2000, following a period of shared custody.
Since assuming complete management in 1999, Panama has run the canal through the Panama Canal Authority.
The treaties played a major role in Mr. Carter’s obituaries, and he always regarded them as outstanding accomplishments. He passed away on December 29.
James Fallows, who was Mr. Carter’s speechwriter at the time and went with the president on that 1978 trip to Panama, said, “Through a bizarre accident of timing, we now have one president fantasizing about taking back the canal at just the time the world recognizes the canal transfer as an important part of a late president’s legacy.”
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