US President Donald Trump's threat to seize the Panama Canal over alleged undue Chinese influence may really be aimed at limiting Beijing's growing diplomatic and economic presenc

In his inaugural address, President Donald Trump reiterated threats he has made about the Panama Canal, claiming, "we're taking it back." He'd previously declared that the rates Panama charges for access to the Panama Canal violated the “magnanimous gesture” the U.

In recent weeks, when he was President-elect Donald Trump publicly said that Panama should return the Panama Canal to the United States, and he would not rule out using military force to reclaim it. At his presidential Inauguration on Monday Trump doubled down on saying that his new administration was going to take back the canal.