Hargeisa (Hornpost.com) – Panama refused to change anything to allow US government ships to cross the Panama Canal for free, after the White House said it accepted the move. The US State Department said in a statement on X that its government ships “can now pass through the Panama Canal free of charge, saving the US government millions of dollars a year in”.
The Panama Canal Authority (ACP) In response to the comments, said it was set to settle payments and other temporary fees for the canal, but no changes were made to anyone ‘.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that he wants to take back control of the waterway, which is the key to international trade.
The 51-mile (82km) Panama Canal occurs in Central America, and is the main link between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who visited Latin American countries this week, demanded that Panama make “rapid changes to what he called ” influence and control of China in the Channel.
A senior US diplomat said that Panama must do something or the US will take the necessary steps to protect its rights under the agreement between the two countries.
During a visit to the country, Rubio met with the president of Panama José Ra’istul Mulino, as well as the director of the canal, Ricaurte Vasquez Morales.
ACP said after his visit that it had conveyed its desire to work with the US Navy to improve the priority of their ships’ traffic through the canal.
This commitment to talks in Washington remains in place, she said in a separate statement Wednesday.
American ships are a major part of canal traffic. By 2024, 52% of waterways had ports of origin or transit to the United States, according to the canal authority.
About 14,000 ships use the canal each year to avoid long and costly travel around the edge of South America.
In his opening speech, President Trump said he plans to return “with the channels”, accusing China of working on it, and that Panama has broken a promise to remain neutral in transit politics.
This plan was strongly rejected by Panama President Mulino, who said that the key trade route “will remain in the hands of the countries”.
He also denied Trump’s accusations about China’s influence, saying that there is no country in the world that interferes with our administration.
The United States built the canal in the early 20th century, but, after years of protests, President Jimmy Carter signed an agreement with Panama in 1977 to gradually restore control of the canal. Which Trump described as “big mistake”
Horn Post staff reporter
