Newly sworn-in U.S. President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States would take back the Panama Canal as he delivered his inauguration speech.
As United States President Trump was sworn in for his second term on Monday, he repeated his wishes to “take back” the Panama Canal.
Trump said the canal had “foolishly been given to the country of Panama” by the US.
He added: “We have been treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made, and Panama’s promise to us has been broken.”
During his inaugural address, Trump highlighted that “American ships are being severely overcharged and not treated fairly. And that includes the United States Navy.”
He also repeated his claim that “China is operating the Panama Canal.”
“And we didn’t give it to China. We gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back.”
Some analysts have questioned whether Trump is serious about pursuing what critics say would be a land grab.
Panama President José Raul Mulino firmly rejected President Donald Trump’s assertion, made during his inaugural speech on Monday, that the United States will “take back” the Panama Canal.
In a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), Mulino reaffirmed Panama’s sovereignty over the canal, emphasizing that the waterway will remain under Panamanian control.
“I must fully reject the statements made by President Donald Trump regarding Panama and its Canal in his inaugural address. I reiterate what I said in my message to the nation on December 22: the Canal is and will remain Panamanian,” Mulino said.
Mulino’s statement emphasized that the canal is the result of “generational struggles” that culminated in 1999 through the Torrijos-Carter Treaty. “Since then, for 25 uninterrupted years, we have administered and expanded it responsibly to serve the world and its commerce, including the United States,” he said.
The Embassy and General Consulate of the Republic of Panama in the Hellenic Republic has released in its website the official statement made by the President of Panama José Raúl Mulino, regarding the recent remarks concerning the Panama Canal.
