By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Pew PatriotsPew PatriotsPew Patriots
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
  • Home
  • News
  • Tactical
  • Guns and Gear
  • Prepping & Survival
  • Videos
Reading: Seeking reset, Hegseth affirms Panama’s sovereignty over canal
Share
Font ResizerAa
Pew PatriotsPew Patriots
  • News
  • Tactical
  • Guns and Gear
  • Prepping & Survival
  • Videos
Search
  • Home
  • News
  • Tactical
  • Guns and Gear
  • Prepping & Survival
  • Videos
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
Seeking reset, Hegseth affirms Panama’s sovereignty over canal
Tactical

Seeking reset, Hegseth affirms Panama’s sovereignty over canal

Jimmie Dempsey
Last updated: April 10, 2025 4:21 pm
Jimmie Dempsey Published April 10, 2025
Share
SHARE

PANAMA CITY — Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sought to reassure Panama that the United States recognizes its sovereignty over the national canal, amid President Donald Trump’s repeated pledge that America would reclaim it.

“We certainly respect the sovereignty of the Panamanians,” Hegseth said before departing the country back to Washington.

Earlier Wednesday, Hegseth faced questions in a press conference about the two countries’ joint statement following their meetings Tuesday. Panama’s version included a line about its sovereignty over the canal; America’s didn’t, though it discussed working through Panama’s constitution, which affirms authority over the canal itself.

The impasse brought back concern that the U.S. was reneging on its agreement ceding the canal to Panamanian control, finalized in 1999 after a 20-year handover.

Trump has disparaged that deal and said multiple times that America would take the canal back — even saying in a March address to Congress that the U.S. was already “reclaiming” the waterway.

Panama’s President Raul Mulino publicly denied the claims and referred to them as an insult on the country’s dignity.

RELATED

Hegseth’s visit this week worked to calm any such tension. In carefully planned remarks, he referenced Panama’s value as a partner and its long history with the U.S., including on building the canal in the early 1900s. He also signed agreements to increase America’s military work with the country through further training and rotating in more U.S. forces and equipment.

“He acknowledged the sovereignty of Panama over the Panama Canal,” Frank Abrego, Panama’s minister of public security, said of Hegseth at the press conference.

Speaking to traveling press on the flight back to Washington, senior defense officials didn’t specify how many further American troops would enter the country, nor give a timeline for their arrival. They also didn’t elaborate on plans Hegseth previewed to renew Fort Sherman, the U.S. military’s now-abandoned jungle fighting school in the country.

Any further dispatch of U.S. troops to Panama would first require consensus with Panama’s government, said one of the defense officials, allowed to speak anonymously to describe the agreement.

In return, Panama’s government expressed interest in American help protecting the canal from cyberattacks and surveilling it.

The U.S. once had a large military presence inside Panama, though it was drawn down heavily during the canal handover. The number of American troops in the country now rises and falls from a few dozen to a couple hundred, depending on exercises and training programs.

In late 1989, America’s military launched a two-month operation to depose Panama’s then-President Manuel Noriega. The invasion has left scars for many in the country today, wary of U.S. coercion and, perhaps, another attack.

“There’s extraordinary sensitivities at hand,” the first defense official said, noting that any suggestion — by China or America — of infringing on Panama’s sovereignty over the canal is a “non-starter” in the country.

At the same time, the officials said, the Trump administration is increasingly concerned about the drift of Panama, and Latin America as a whole, toward what it calls “China’s malign influence.”

China’s government has vastly expanded its trade and investment relationship with the region, including through the Belt and Road Initiative, a global infrastructure program American officials say includes predatory lending practices.

On the trip, Hegseth added a clause to Trump’s pledge to take the canal back, soothing concerns that the U.S. military was developing plans to seize the waterway, reported by multiple outlets in March.

“Together, we are going to take back the canal from China’s influence,” Hegseth said.

Mulino pulled Panama from the Belt and Road Initiative this February, the same month U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made an earlier visit to the country. Hegseth mentioned his respect for Mulino’s leadership multiple times on the trip, and the secretary’s team described the president as a long-term partner.

The Trump administration has said the U.S. will focus more intently on Latin America, including through the American military, which surged troops and warships for immigration missions since January.

In turn, Hegseth repeatedly called the Panama Canal “key terrain” and affirmed America’s commitment to maintain its access to it — repeated in the two countries’ joint statement.

Around 40% of U.S. container traffic passes through the Panama Canal each year alongside about 100 American Navy vessels, a number that would surely increase if a war began in the Pacific.

Noah Robertson is the Pentagon reporter at Defense News. He previously covered national security for the Christian Science Monitor. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and government from the College of William & Mary in his hometown of Williamsburg, Virginia.

Read the full article here

You Might Also Like

First Shots: Ruger RXM Pistol

Navy fires CO of Navy Reserve Center Shreveport

Hegseth vows US will ‘take back’ Panama canal from Chinese influence

First Look: New Caliber Options For The Rossi Brawler

First Look: POF LMR Base Rifle

Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Email Print
Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

We Recommend
Newsom debuts rapid-response website as critics accuse him of prioritizing presidential ambitions
News

Newsom debuts rapid-response website as critics accuse him of prioritizing presidential ambitions

Jimmie Dempsey Jimmie Dempsey May 9, 2025
Jemele Hill returns to ESPN’s ‘Around the Horn’ before show’s cancellation, jokes about previous firing
USA Fencing transgender controversy escalates at DOGE hearing with social media regrets, calls for resignation
I Carry: Springfield Armory TRP 1911 AOS Pistol in an ANR Design Holster
Charles Barkley expresses concern about how Jordon Hudson is affecting Bill Belichick’s legacy
Biden stumbles over question about Harris’ timetable to win after he dropped out of race
Republican DA bucks blue state’s ‘broken sentencing’ with tough-on-crime approach
News

Republican DA bucks blue state’s ‘broken sentencing’ with tough-on-crime approach

Jimmie Dempsey Jimmie Dempsey May 9, 2025
DHS defends ICE detainment of Georgia college student who violated traffic laws: ‘Not ignoring rule of law’
News

DHS defends ICE detainment of Georgia college student who violated traffic laws: ‘Not ignoring rule of law’

Jimmie Dempsey Jimmie Dempsey May 9, 2025
Randy Travis stages stunning comeback with help from AI after devastating stroke
News

Randy Travis stages stunning comeback with help from AI after devastating stroke

Jimmie Dempsey Jimmie Dempsey May 9, 2025
Pew Patriots
  • News
  • Tactical
  • Prepping & Survival
  • Guns and Gear
  • Videos
  • Blog
2024 © Pew Patriots. All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?