REPORT: Panama Canal Now Under AMERICAN CONTROL

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Just a few hours before President Trump is set to address a full session of Congress, news has come that one of his top priorities has been achieved.

In fact, there were two parts to President Trump’s goals for the Panama Canal — and BOTH have now become a reality in little over 6 weeks of his return to the White House.

First, the United States is no longer being charged for transit through the Panama Canal.

That was one part of President Trump’s agenda for the Panama Canal.

But the SECOND part of President Trump’s agenda as it relates to the Panama Canal was to TAKE IT BACK; putting it back under the control of U.S. companies.

Here was the President speaking just a month ago about his intention to take the Panama Canal back:

And news just broke that the Panama Canal is now back under American control.

And by that, I mean no longer under the control of Chinese companies who — as a rule (seriously… this is Chinese law) — report directly to the Chinese Communist Party.

In a stunning development, with no shots fired and no military operations needed, the Chinese company that runs the Panama Canal, CK Hutchinson, announced it is selling its controlling stake according to CNN:

Trump said several times during the lead-up to his inauguration and since taking office that he intends to “take back” the Panama Canal from Panama, which took over control of the crucial international waterway in 1999 under a treaty negotiated with the United States 20 years earlier. And he cited Chinese ownership of some of the port operations as a sign that China is now running the canal.

“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,” said Trump during his inaugural address. At a January press conference ahead of his inauguration, Trump would not rule out using either military force or economic coercion to take control of the canal once again.

The Panama Canal was constructed by the United States in the early years of the 20th century and was completed in 1914. For most of that century it was operated by the United States, before the Carter Administration negotiated its handover to Panama in a controversial treaty opposed by many Republicans at the time.

The 51-mile canal is a key to both the movement of international trade and US military vessels. About 4% of the world’s maritime trade and more than 40% of US container traffic traverses canal.

But removing Chinese influence is only part of Trump’s demands on Panama, including that Panama stop charging fees to American vessels. During his first trip abroad as Secretary of State, which began with a stop in Panama, Marco Rubio said he agreed that US vessels be allowed to traverse the canal at no charge.

Rubio said that the US would be obligated to protect the Panama Canal if it came under attack, adding that he found it “absurd that we would have to pay fees to transit a zone that we are obligated to protect in a time of conflict.”

Back in January, President Trump was asked if he would rule out using military or economic pressure to take the Canal (and Greenland, for that matter).

Not one to beat around the bush… here was his answer then.

His directness and lack of ambiguity surely added to the quick win!

Even in December of last year, just a few weeks after winning the election, President Trump was hammering the topic on a constant basis.

He framed the Panama Canal question in light of geopolitical security; specifically an issue of American national security.

He didn’t waver in treating the issue as a non-negotiable component of his second term.

On Dec. 21st of last year, he posted at length on the issue on his Truth Social account:

Here’s the full text of that post in case that’s hard to read:

The Panama Canal is considered a VITAL National Asset for the United States, due to its critical role to America’s Economy and National Security. A secure Panama Canal is crucial for U.S. Commerce, and rapid deployment of the Navy, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and drastically cuts shipping times to U.S. ports. The United States is the Number One user of the Canal, with over 70 percent of all transits heading to, or from, U.S. ports. Considered one of the Wonders of the Modern World, the Panama Canal opened for business 110 years ago, and was built at HUGE cost to the United States in lives and treasure – 38,000 American men died from infected mosquitos in the jungles during construction. Teddy Roosevelt was President of the United States at the time of its building, and understood the strength of Naval Power and Trade. When President Jimmy Carter foolishly gave it away, for One Dollar, during his term in Office, it was solely for Panama to manage, not China, or anyone else. It was likewise not given for Panama to charge the United States, its Navy, and corporations, doing business within our Country, exorbitant prices and rates of passage. Our Navy and Commerce have been treated in a very unfair and injudicious way. The fees being charged by Panama are ridiculous, especially knowing the extraordinary generosity that has been bestowed to Panama by the U.S. This complete “rip-off” of our Country will immediately stop….

Matthew Kroenig, known for his research and expertise on all things international security related, echoes President Trump’s national security angle regarding the issue when he testified last month to the dangers posed by Chinese companies running the Canal.

Kroenig lined out the economic implications of allowing China to control a choke point controlling a vast amount of shipping bound for the United States.

But he also specified the potential China would have to hinder American military power across the globe.

Here’s a clip of Kroenig answer those questions as posed by Rep. Carlos Gimenez:

The road that led to Chinese control wasn’t perfectly straight.

Even though control of the Canal was originally transferred to companies operating in the British colonial territory of Hong Kong in 1996… the Chinese takeover of Hong Kong just a year later changed everything, according to a report in the New York Post:

In 1996, Panama made a 25-year agreement to outsource management of the canal’s two entry ports — Cristóbal on the Atlantic side and Balboa on the Pacific — to a subsidiary of Hutchison Whampoa, a Hong Kong-based shipping firm.

Technically, the deal seemed to violate the 1977 Panama-US treaties, which guaranteed Panamanian operational control and local security for the canal as well as ownership.

At that time, however, Hong Kong was still a British colony — and both Congress and the US Federal Maritime Commission determined that Hutchison’s operations were not a threat to American interests.

Times have changed.

In 1997, Hong Kong reverted to Chinese communist rule — and despite its promise to preserve the former colony’s distinct political system for 50 years, Beijing has taken complete control there.

The Chinese Communist Party can exercise direct and possibly unlimited influence over any of Hong Kong’s companies, anywhere in the world.

Hutchison’s operational concession, which was renewed by Panama’s government in 2021, thus preserves de facto Chinese control over one of the world’s most vital conduits of maritime traffic.

By 2022, additional Chinese investment in Panama flooded more than $2.5 billion of Beijing’s capital into the Canal Zone, where more than 40 other Chinese companies now operate.

Two-thirds of the Panama Canal’s commercial traffic either originates from or is bound for American ports.

The conduit is also vital for the movement of US naval forces between the Atlantic and the Pacific, an essential asset in the face of rising international tensions in the Asia-Pacific region — tensions that China could well inflame in the coming years.

However good the news, there are always drawbacks.

In this case, I dare say the most negative sticking point has to do with WHICH American company is actually purchasing and operating the ports.

Would you believe me if I said… BlackRock?

The $19 billion dollar purchase is actually going to a conglomerate of companies which INCLUDES BlackRock.

Still, just the mention of that company immediately makes me suspicious.

And it’s hard not to be suspicious — BlackRock has its’ hands (tentacles?) in EVERYTHING; but that’s another story in itself.

The deal will ultimately transfer a whopping 90% stake in the Panama Ports Company to the group of companies, according to Newsweek:

Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison announced Tuesday that it is selling its controlling stake in a unit managing Panama’s ports to a consortium that includes BlackRock, the world’s largest asset management firm.

The move comes as President Donald Trump’s administration intensifies efforts to limit Chinese influence in the region. CK Hutchison has managed the ports at the Panama Canal’s Pacific and Atlantic entrances for over 20 years. While not directly financially linked to the Chinese government, Hong Kong-based companies remain subject to state oversight.

BlackRock’s involvement signals a shift of control from a Hong Kong-based company to an American-led consortium, aligning with U.S. strategic efforts to reduce Chinese influence in key global trade hubs.

The deal will transfer a 90 percent stake in Panama Ports Company, which operates the Balboa and Cristobal ports, to the consortium, effectively shifting control of key trade hubs in the South American country.

While I’m exceedingly suspicious of BlackRock, I am chalking this up as a win for President Trump, and America.

It’s not every day that an American President applies effective leveraging power to make real differences in everything from our financial outlook to our national security.

Actually, it seems as if it’s every day lately… with the President’s team running at breakneck speed to deliver on ALL of his campaign promises.

For now, I’m going to assume that not EVERYTHING BlackRock has a stake in is for sinister purposes.

I’m giving President Trump the win on this one.

But I’ll be keeping my eye on BlackRock even more, knowing they just hedged out the Chinese Communist Party from controlling 40% of the goods coming in to the United States… and put themselves in its’ place.



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