BOGOTA: Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino rejected claims made Monday by Donald Trump that the US would “recover” the Panama Canal, by saying the waterway “is and will continue to be Panama’s.”
“On behalf of the Republic of Panama and its people, I must reject in a comprehensive manner the words outlined by President Donald Trump regarding Panama and its Canal, in his inaugural speech,” he said. “The Canal is and will continue to be Panama’s and its administration will continue to be under Panamanian control with respect to its permanent neutrality.”
Mulino denied that there is a foreign presence in the administration of the canal after the newly-sworn US president said in his inaugural address 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.”
“There is no presence of any nation in the world that interferes with our administration,” said Mulino, adding that the canal was not a concession from anyone, but rather the result of generational struggles that culminated in the Torrijos-Carter Treaty in 1999 between Panamanian President Omar Torrijos and US President Jimmy Carter,
“Since then until now, for 25 years, without interruption, we have managed and expanded it responsibly to serve the world and its trade, including the United States,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly expressed a desire to reclaim the canal, citing concerns that American ships are being overcharged.
Trump said that the US has been “treated very badly from this foolish gift that should have never been made.”
“The purpose of our deal and the spirit of our treaty has been totally violated. American ships are being severely overcharged and not treated fairly in any way, shape or form, and that includes the United States Navy,” he said.
The Panamanian government has made it clear that although “dialogue is always the way to clarify” disputes, the sovereignty and ownership of the canal are non-negotiable.
