Why has Trump made the Panama canal a top priority? – podcast | Panama 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.”

Donald Trump’s claim in his inauguration speech that Panama had “broken its promises” to the US was alarming for many Panamanians. Washington relinquished control of the canal in 1977, so why is Trump pressing the issue now?

“For many Panamanians, this is a settled understanding that they administrate the canal, that they’ve been running it for decades,” the Guardian’s global affairs correspondent, Andrew Roth, tells Hannah Moore.

“For Donald Trump to come out and make basically two claims – first of all, that the canal is mismanaged, and second of all, that China is running the canal - it’s almost like an insult to the national pride of many Panamanians.”

Andrew explains the political resonance of the issue for older voters in the US, where the claims about Chinese influence have come from, and why an old grudge involving one of Trump’s hotels might also be part of his motivation.

Support the Guardian today: theguardian.com/todayinfocuspod

Marco Rubio at the Miraflores locks on the Panama canal
Photograph: Mark Schiefelbein/Reuters


Source link

Posted: 2025-02-05 04:10:26

Southern California's Mountain Fire destroys dozens of homes, puts thousands under evacuation order
 



... Read More

Israeli strike on UN school in Gaza kills at least 20, survivors say
 



... Read More

Mary Berry shares her ‘really easy’ chicken casserole recipe
 



... Read More

Olympic hammer throw champion Ethan Katzberg wins CP male athlete of the year
 



... Read More

Terrifying map shows how Russia's new hypersonic missile could level UK in 8 minutes | World | News
 



... Read More

Canadian women Thompson, Sherret, Schmidt sweep World Cup ski cross podium
 



... Read More

India and China agree to resume direct flights for first time in five years | India
 



... Read More

UK flood warnings: Full list of 136 areas on high alert as heavy rain sparks chaos
 



... Read More