While Donald Trump has declared that the US will take back the Panama Canal, analysts question whether America could actually regain it, especially since several major Chinese and China-backed corporations have made deep inroads here.
Since returning to the White House for his second Presidential term, US President Donald Trump has been vocal about “taking back” the Panama Canal, which he claimed was “sold” by the Jimmy Carter administration for just $1, despite being built by American workers, using American taxpayer money.
“Unlike (Ronald) Reagan’s time, we now have the technology to build a powerful army like Israel and we will protect our citizens. We will promote our commercial and military shipbuilding. A new office for shipbuilding will be set up in the White House, which will work fast. And to strengthen national security, we will take back the Panama Canal. We have started it. A big American company has already announced to buy both the ports,” Trump declared in his first address to the US Congress after assuming office as the 47th President.
Trump asserted that the Panama Canal was built with American money and “38,000 American workers lost their lives” during the construction of the what he termed as the “most expensive project of any US administration”.
“Jimmy Carter just handed it (the canal) over Panama for a mere $1. It was not given to China, but now we are taking it back,” the US President declared.
Greatest engineering project
Built over a span of 33 years, the construction of the Panama Canal began in 1881 and was completed in 1914. According to records, around $287 million, which equals to around $23.4 billion, Rs 2,03,731 crore in today’s money, was spent in the canal’s construction, and over 38,000 American workers lost their lives due to malaria and other diseases, during the project.
However, after its construction, the Panama Canal, considered by many as one of America’s greatest engineering achievements, was simply ‘sold’ to Panama for just 1USD.
The South American nation now controls this strategically important canal, and Trump has declared that the US will take it back in the coming months.
The US took over responsibility of building the Panama Canal in 1904 after France left the project midway, finding it too cumbersome. In 1914, construction finished on the canal as US pumped around 287 million USD into the project, besides the reported human toll which is estimated at over 38,000 deaths.
Why US ‘sold’ the Panama Canal?
On September 7, 1977, then US President Jimmy Carter signed the Torrijos-Carter Treaties between the United States and Panama under which the control of the Panama Canal was transferred from the US to the South American country. The transfer deal came into effect on December 31, 1999.
The Carter administration believed it would be more beneficial for the US to transfer the control of the Panama Canal to the Panamanian government as it would resolve long-standing tensions over territorial control between the two countries. The treaties were also aimed to uphold Panama’s demand of restoring sovereignty over its territory, guarantee the canal’s neutrality, and cement importance as a global trade route.
However, Carter’s decision faced severe backlash at home as many US leaders considered the Panama Canal as “American property”, which the President was giving away.
The canal was officially handed over to Panama in 1999, with the US receiving a symbolic payment of just $1 for the sale. The transfer stirred controversy at the time with many experts claiming that the deal did not provide the US any significant strategic advantage. After Panama’s acquisition, company’s from other world nations, including US rivals, China and Russia, began to take interest and invest in the region, gradually diminishing America’s influence from this strategic trade route.
Can US take back Panama Canal?
While Donald Trump has declared that the US will take back the Panama Canal, analysts question whether America could actually regain it, especially since several major Chinese and China-backed corporations have made deep inroads here, even though the canal is officially under the control of the Panama government.
If Trump actually want to reassert US control on the Panama Canal, Washington will have to sign a new deal with Panama, or take it by military force, according to experts.