Panama City (TDI): Panama’s top political leaders held a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the 25th anniversary of the return of the Panama Canal after decades of US control.
During the ceremony, President Jose Raul emphasized that the Panama Canal would remain in Panama’s possession, according to media reports.
“The Panama Canal is solely under Panama control,” Mulino stated, adding “Rest assured, it will remain in our hands forever.”
The commemoration was made more poignant by the death on Sunday of ex-US president Jimmy Carter, who negotiated the 1999 handover agreement.
On December 21, in a post on his online platform Truth Social, US president-elect Donald Trump said that Panamanian authorities were charging “exorbitant prices” for canal passage.
Also Read: Trump Threatens to Retake Panama Canal
Trump indicated that Panama was violating a 1977 deal that established conditions for the canal to shift from the united States to Panamanian hands.
“This complete ‘rip-off’ of our nation will immediately stop,” Trump wrote in the first of two lengthy social media posts. In the second, he gave a warning.
“If the legal and moral principles behind the generous act are not upheld, the US will demand the full and unquestionable return of the Panama Canal,” he wrote.
The 1977 treaties “put an end to an era of subjugation and began an era of independence and dignity,” another former Panamanian president Martin Torrijos said, according to AFP.
“Any attempt to reverse or violate Panama’s sovereignty will be condemned and rejected by all Panamanians,” he added.
China Respects Panama’s Sovereignty Over Canal
Beijing will as always respect Panama’s sovereignty over the Canal and recognize it as a permanently neutral international waterway, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday, in response to a query about Donald Trump’s claim that there are Chinese soldiers stationed at the Panama Canal.
Also Read: US Undersecretary of State visits Panama
Mao said, “The Panama Canal is a remarkable creation of the Panamanians. It is a golden waterway for connectivity among nations. China has so consistently the Panamanian people in their rightful pursuit of sovereignty over the Canal.”
