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markinkansas I think that Trump is upset that American ships are being charged so much to pass through the canal. I recognize his threats as a negotiation ploy for cheaper rates for our ships.
" In a pair of Truth Social posts on Saturday night, Trump used his pending bully pulpit to claim that Panama was charging “exorbitant” and “ridiculous” fees for the U.S. and corporations with U.S. interests to transit the 50-mile canal. He complained that Panama wasn’t showing the U.S. enough gratitude for building the complex waterway. He lambasted the 1977 treaty Jimmy Carter signed ceding the canal to Panama, and he claimed Panama was violating that treaty by allowing China to manage it. Then he threatened that if things didn’t change, “we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question”:
"This complete “rip-off” of our Country will immediately stop The United States has a vested interest in the secure, efficient, and reliable operation of the Panama Canal, and that was always understood. We would and will NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands! It was not given for the benefit of others, but merely as a token of cooperation with us and Panama. If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question. To the Officials of Panama, please be guided accordingly!"
China does not manage the canal. Trump’s complaints on that relate to Panama having renewed, in 2022, a longstanding arrangement with a Hong Kong-based company to manage the two ports of entry to the canal. (The renewed deal has also recently drawn some ire in Congress.)
Trump reiterated his demand during his speech at the Turning Point USA America Fest on Sunday:
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino wasn’t impressed. “Every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belongs to Panama and will continue to be so,” Mulino responded on Sunday, though without mentioning Trump by name. “The sovereignty and independence of our country aren’t negotiable.”
Per the Associated Press:
Without mentioning Trump by name, Mulino addressed Trump’s complaints over rising fees for ships crossing the canal, saying they are set by experts who take into account operational costs, and supply and demand factors.
“The tariffs are not set on a whim” Mulino said. He noted that Panama has expanded the canal over the years to increase ship traffic “on its own initiative,” and added that shipping fee increases help pay for improvements.
“Panamanians may have different views on many issues” Mulino said. “But when it comes to our canal, and our sovereignty, we will all unite under our Panamanian flag.”
Trump then posted “We’ll see about that!” in response and shared an image of an American flag over the canal captioned with the message “Welcome to the United States Canal!”
Since Panama is clearly not willing to give back the Canal — which the country has controlled since 1999 and spent billions of dollars to improve, and is a source of great national pride — pretty much the only way Trump could take control of the waterway would be for the U.S. to invade Panama (again).
One shipping expert who spoke with Bloomberg wondered if Trump’s bluster was about reducing the cost of exporting liquid natural gas:
Tankers moving LNG have a high ratio of shipping cost to cargo value. “With news reports indicating that more LNG export facilities will be opened up, perhaps that might be something Trump is focused on with this threat,” said [shipping industry veteran John McCown], who wondered about the precedent set if the US were to retake control of the canal. “This decision was long ago made and appropriately documented and we can’t just unilaterally say it never happened,” he said. “If we do that, what’s to stop Russia from saying we want Alaska back or France from saying we want the Louisiana Purchase back? So, at multiple levels, this threat makes no sense to me.”
Also, Trump still wants Greenland. In his announcement on Sunday nominating tech investor Ken Howery as ambassador to Denmark, Trump wrote that “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.”"
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/trump-panama-canal-threat.html
