President Donald Trump doubled down on the United States retaking the Panama Canal, stating that Panama had “violated the agreement” between the two countries.
After signing executive orders, Trump spoke to reporters about how Secretary of State Marco Rubio would be visiting Panama during his first international trip. Trump highlighted how the U.S. had “built the Panama Canal 110 years ago,” and described it as being “one of the great wonders of the world.”
In December, Trump threatened to retake the Panama Canal, citing how the U.S. was being ripped off and hit with “exorbitant” transit fees.
“Marco Rubio, as you know, is going to make a tour of various countries in South America — he’s going to be meeting in Panama, where Panama’s treated us very badly,” Trump said.
“We built the Panama Canal 110 years ago. Think of it. The most expensive development we ever did, and really one of the wonders of the world. One of the great wonders of the world,” Trump added. “We didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama, and Panama’s been ripping down all the China language signs. They’ve been working like mad…… but about 70 percent of the signs were up and they were written in Chinese and that’s not the deal.”
“So, we’re going to take it back,” Trump added. “They’ve already offered to do many things, but we think its appropriate that we take it back. They’ve totally violated the agreement, we have an agreement — they violated the agreement, and Marco Rubio’s going over there to talk to the gentleman that’s in charge.”
While Trump has remained adamant about the U.S. retaking the Panama Canal, Panama’s President, José Raúl Mulino, has stated that “every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent zone belongs to Panama, and will continue to do so.”
Breitbart News’s Christian K. Caruzo reported that after Rubio “echoed” Trump’s “concerns over the possible Chinese influence in the important interoceanic trade route,” Panama sent a “letter to the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres” expressing concerns that Trump wants to take control of the Panama Canal.
The Panamanian Foreign Ministry published a copy of the missive signed by the natin’s Permanent Representative at the U.N. Eloy Alfaro de Alba. In the letter, the diplomat referred to Article 2 of the United Nations charter which states that all member-states “shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any other manner inconsistent with the Purposes of the United Nations.”
Ahead of Rubio’s visit to Panama, Mulino explained that negotiations regarding the Panama Canal being returned to the U.S. were “impossible.”
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