Despite Trump’s call for US oversight, Panama celebrates canal handover | Government news

Top political leaders in Panama held a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of his return Panama Canal After decades of US control.

But the celebration was held with the coolness of the newly elected President of the United States, Donald Trump ongoing calls for his country to regain the upper hand On the main waterway connecting the Pacific Ocean with the Caribbean Sea.

Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino, a right-leaning leader like Trump, was among the speakers at the main ceremony in the capital city of Panama on Tuesday.

He assured the audience that the Panama Canal will remain in his country, Trump’s notes Without naming the US leader.

“There are no hands in the canal except Panama,” Mulino said. “Rest assured, it will be ours forever.”

But Trump has increasingly pushed for US control of the canal as part of his broader expansionist rhetoric.

Earlier this month, Trump argued that Canada should become the 51st state of the United States, and he reiterated his desire to buy Greenland, the first time he has floated the idea during his presidency.

But as Trump prepares for a second term on January 20, he has alarmed some observers by threatening to take back the Panama Canal from Panamanian control.

In a Dec. 21 post on his Truth Social online platform, Trump accused Panamanian officials of charging “exorbitant prices” for crossing the canal.

The canal allows cargo ships to cross from the Pacific to the Atlantic without having to go all the way around South America, a dangerous route that stretches for thousands of kilometers.

However, in recent decades, there has been an increase in traffic on the canal. It also suffered from a severe drought that impeded travel through a system of locks: chambers of water that lift boats up and down when the surrounding land is uneven.

However, Trump noted in his posts that Panama violated the 1977 treaty that set the terms for the canal to be transferred from the United States to the Panamanians.

“This complete ‘dismantling’ of our country must stop immediately,” Trump wrote first from two long posts. in the year the secondhe continued with a warning.

“If both the moral and legal principles of this compassionate donation gesture are not respected, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us in full and without question,” he said.

“Panama officials, please guide accordingly.”

Control history

The construction of a canal through the Isthmus of Panama has long been an ambition of Western colonialists.

For example, in the late 1800s, the United States made proposals to build a canal in Panama, then part of Colombia, but the South American country refused the deal.

When Panama later declared independence, the United States was quick to support its secession. The United States became the first country to recognize Panama as its state.

In exchange for US support, Panama gave the North American country the right to build the canal and control the land around it. That area became known as the Panama Canal Zone.

However, critics assessed the agreement as a violation of Panamanian sovereignty. Finally, in 1977, then US President Jimmy Carter signed two agreements to return the canal and the land around it.

That transfer came into force exactly 25 years ago, on December 31, 1999.

Carter is dead on Sunday, just shy of the anniversary. Mulino paid respect Tuesday with a moment of silence for the late US president.

In his speech, Mulino described feeling “a mixture of happiness for this 25th anniversary” and “sadness” over Carter’s death.

“Martyrs” are mentioned

Tuesday’s commemorations also acknowledged protesters who died advocating the return of the canal to Panamanian control.

Among those honored were more than 20 participants who died in the student protest on January 9, 1964.

On that day, known as Martyrs’ Day in Panama, students at a high school in the canal zone were seen trying to raise the Panamanian flag alongside the US flag. Violence ensued, resulting in the deaths of protesters and four US soldiers.

In recent days, there is Trump accused Panama violated the terms of the canal’s return by allowing Chinese soldiers to control the shipping route.

But Panamanian officials have denied that China has any influence over the canal.

Jorge Luis Quijano, who served as the channel’s administrator in 2014-2019, writes with reference to “The Associated Press” that Trump’s claims about the channel have no legal basis.

Quijano said, “There is no clause in the settlement agreement that would allow the channel to be bought back.”