President-elect Donald Trump has again suggested that the United States take over the Panama Canal, a shipping waterway that cuts across Central America, if taxes for using the canal are not lowered.
Panama's director fired back in a recent statement, saying the shipping canal is not for sale. Since then, Trump has repeatedly posted about the canal.
This is the latest in a series of similar statements from Trump, who recently praised the United States take over Greenlandhe has an idea too launched during his first presidency. He also makes fun of Canada to be a US state.
Here's what you know about the history of the Panama Canal and the United States' involvement in the shipping chain.
History of the Panama Canal
The Panama Canal was built by the United States between 1904 and 1913, and opened in 1917. The construction of the canal cost approximately $375 million, making it the most expensive construction project in US history at the time , according to the Government Panama Canal Authority. The canal connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, offering ships a short route around the tip of South America. The canal changed shipping traffic in the area.
The US acquired the rights to build and operate the canal in the early 20th century, but at the time, Panama was in the process of breaking away from Colombia, whose senator refused to ratify a treaty allowing the canal. to build, according to the Office of the Historian Department of State.
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To ensure that the canal could be built, it used to be President Theodore Roosevelt support for Panamanian independence, and in 1903, the US and Panama signed a treaty that established permanent US rights to the “Panama Canal Zone” that stretched across the country. However, the person who negotiated on behalf of Panama did not have formal permission from the country's government and had not lived in the country for 17 years, causing many Panamanians to question the validity of the treaty. , according to the Historian's Office.
Throughout the 20th century, the US and Panama dealt with tensions around the canal, including a dispute in the 60s that led to a brief rupture in diplomatic relations between the countries. In 1967, the US and Panama began negotiating a new treaty, eventually reaching an agreement, but due to a change in elected leaders and a coup in Panama a new government was established in the Central American country, according to the Office the Historian. . As a result, the negotiations suffered a “great reality.”
Discussions continued through the 70s. When Jimmy Carter was elected president, he made ending the reconciliation process a priority, according to the Historian's Office. In 1977, two treaties were submitted to the US Senate: the Neutrality Treaty, which stated that the US could use its military to protect the canal, allowing “permanent US use” of the waterway, and the Panama Canal Treaty, which would end its existence. of the Panama Canal Zone and allowed the canal to be turned over to Panama in December 1999. As part of the second treaty, Panama would also be primarily responsible for protecting the canal.
The contracts, called together Torrijos-Carter Contractswere signed on September 7, 1977. In the spring of 1978, the US Senate voted to ratify the treaties, and Carter signed them on September 27, 1979. The canal was transferred to Panama on December 31, 1999, during the Clinton administration.
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Who operates the Panama Canal?
The Panama Canal has been owned and operated by the Panama Canal Authority, a government agency, since 1999. The agency was established shortly before the canal was returned to Panama.
Since taking control of the canal, the Panama Canal Authority has invested billions in expanding the canal. A $5.25 billion expansion of the canal opened in 2016, doubling the waterway's capacity and cutting global shipping costs by about $8 billion a year, It was previously reported on CBS News. Let the expansion also larger vessels to pass.
Who uses the Panama Canal?
About 40% of the world's cargo ship traffic moves through the Panama Canal, It was previously reported on CBS Newsalthough recent droughts have forced operators to reduce ship routes.
About two-thirds of the traffic on the canal is either bound for the United States or leaving, although ships from all over the world use the waterway every day, which according to the Panama Canal Authority.
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Between 13,000 and 14,000 boats use the canal each year, the group said.
Trump, the Panamanian president is fighting
Trump first appeared to suggest that the United States should take over the Panama Canal in a Post TruthSocial on December 21.
He also raised the issue with a crowd of supporters at Turning Point's American Fair on Sunday, where he said Panama is charging “exorbitant prices” and said “the entire border of our country would stop immediately.”
“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnificent gesture of donation are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States, in its entirety, quickly and without question,” Trump said.
On Wednesday, Trump said he would name it Miami-Dade International Trade Coalition member Kevin Marino Cabrera to serve as US ambassador to Panama. In that advertisementhe accused Panama of having “rushed us on the Panama Canal, far beyond their wildest dreams.”
Trump continued to post online about the US getting back ownership of the canal, and he mentioned the canal in a Christmas Day message shared on TruthSocial. He warned of China's potential influence at the shipping canal, although there is no Chinese presence at the canal, according to Reuters. A Hong Kong-based company manages two ports on the canal, Reuters reported.
The President of Panama José Raúl Mulino said in a statement shared on social media that “every square meter” of the canal “belongs to Panama and continues with Panama.”
“We'll see about that!” Trump write online in response.
