Tag Archives: Panama

“American Ships, both Military and Commercial, should be allowed to travel, free of charge, through the Panama and Suez Canals! Those Canals would not exist without the United States of America. I’ve asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to immediately take care of, and memorialize, this situation!” – Trump, posting to Truth  Social. The Guardian reports: The Panamanian president, Jose …

“I want to thank President Molina, a pro-Trump, pro-America president of Panama who’s sticking his neck out against communists, whose influence was real there. Maria, you could see it; you could feel it. China has too much influence over the Panama Canal and America is gonna take it back. That’s exactly what I was charged to do, [and] what we’re …

NBC News reports: The White House has directed the U.S. military to draw up options for increasing the American troop presence in Panama to achieve President Trump’s goal of “reclaiming” the Panama Canal, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the planning. During a joint address to Congress last week, Trump said, “to further enhance our national security, my administration …

The Daily Beast reports: The president of Panama blasted his American counterpart Donald Trump on Wednesday for “lying” about US efforts to retake the Panama Canal. “Once again, President Trump is lying,” José Raúl Mulino wrote in a social media post. “The Panama Canal is not in the process of recovery.” During an address to Congress Tuesday, Trump reiterated his …

Reuters reports: Panama President José Raúl Mulino said on Thursday the U.S. was spreading “lies and falsehoods” after the State Department claimed U.S. government vessels would be able to pass through the Panama Canal without paying. The comments were likely to exacerbate tensions between the two countries after the U.S. had cited progress on military cooperation and confronting alleged Chinese …

Axios reports: In a rebuke of the Trump administration, Panama has refuted a claim by the U.S. State Department that American vessels can now transit the Panama Canal without being charged fees. The dispute comes shortly after the State Department made the announcement Wednesday evening. President Trump has pushed to regain control of the canal — one of the world’s …

“Secretary of State Rubio is in Panama — Panama right now. And we’re talking about the Panama Canal. What they’ve done is terrible. They violated the agreement. They are not allowed to violate the agreement. China is running the Panama Canal. That was not given to China. That was given to Panama, foolishly. But they violated the agreement. And we’re …

The Washington Post reports: Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to arrive in Panama on Saturday with a lofty assignment: Retake the Panama Canal, the U.S.-built waterway that President Donald Trump laments should have never been relinquished to the Central American country 25 years ago. The audacious demand, which Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino called “impossible” and regional leaders …

Politico reports: Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to visit Panama — the country whose canal President Donald Trump has suggested he’d seize — as early as next week, according to three U.S. officials briefed on the plan. The trip is expected to be Rubio’s first foreign travel as secretary of State, said one former official who was also …

CNN reports: Trump in his inaugural address on Monday vowed to wrest the canal back. “We have been treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made and Panama’s promise to us been broken,” Trump said, claiming that Panama overcharges the US Navy to transit the canal. “Above all China is operating the Panama Canal,” Trump …

ABC News reports: Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in acquiring Greenland and the Panama Canal, even not ruling out using the U.S. military to do so if he saw fit. Asked if Trump was serious about using military power, Waltz said, “What he’s very serious about is the threats that we’re facing in the Arctic — the threats that we’re …

Deutsche Welle reports: Panama reiterated on Tuesday that the sovereignty of its eponymous ship canal was not up for discussion after US President-elect Donald Trump refused to rule out military action to regain control. “The sovereignty of our canal is not negotiable and is part of our history of struggle,” Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha said, adding that President Jose Raul …

Axios reports: Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday vehemently denied President-elect Trump’s claims of Chinese interference in the Panama Canal. “There is absolutely not any interference” from China or any other nation in the operation of the canal, Mulino said during a Thursday briefing, emphasizing that Panama is open for business equally to all interested parties. “There are no …

The Hill reports: “It is utterly preposterous to suggest that we are going to send our military into Panama to, quote, ‘take back the Panama Canal,’” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said during a Thursday appearance on CNN. “We have a treaty with Panama. We have a free trade agreement with Panama,” she added. “We are no more going to take …

The Hill reports: President-elect Trump on Wednesday announced Miami-Dade County Commissioner Kevin Marino Cabrera as his pick for U.S. ambassador to Panama. The announcement comes as Trump is sparking a feud with the U.S. ally over control of the Panama Canal. Cabrera must figure out how to navigate a tension filled relationship with the country amid the president-elect’s position on …

“The American people have given President Trump a mandate. They are tired of our nation not putting Americans first. And we have seen the Biden administration have an America-last policy. “So, when it comes to dealing with the Panama Canal and making certain that China is not being advantaged in this, and America disadvantaged, of course. Let’s put this issue …

Politico reports: President-elect Donald Trump threatened on Saturday that the U.S. would reassume control of the Panama Canal if it felt that Panama wasn’t honoring the terms of a 1977 treaty regarding the waterway’s legal status. In two lengthy Truth Social posts Saturday evening, Trump accused Panama of charging U.S. vessels exorbitant rates to pass through the critical waterway. He …

The Guardian reports: Prosecutors in Panama have found the corpses of six children and one adult in a clandestine burial pit where a religious sect was found torturing indigenous people in exorcism rituals. Prosecutors said the victims ranged in age from one to 17, and that the adult was a pregnant woman who was the mother of five of the …

The Associated Press reports: U.S. President Donald Trump’s company appealed directly to Panama’s president to intervene in its fight over control of a luxury hotel, even invoking a treaty between the two countries, in what ethics experts say was a blatant mingling of Trump’s business and government interests. That appeal in a letter last month from lawyers for the Trump …

The Associated Press reports: Lawyers for President Donald Trump’s family hotel business threatened a Panamanian judicial official handling a dispute related to Trump Hotels’ management of a 70-story luxury hotel, according to a complaint filed with the anti-corruption division of Panama’s chief prosecutor. The complaint reviewed by The Associated Press said lawyers from the firm representing Trump’s hotel management business …