US Republican Dusty Johnson Pushes Plan For US To Regain Control Of The Panama Canal

(MENAFN- Newsroom Panama) U.S. Representative Dustin M. Johnson of South Dakota announced the introduction of a bill to authorize President-elect Donald Trump
to purchase the Panama Canal and place it under U.S. control.
According to
The Hill, Johnson planned to introduce the proposal, called the“Panama Canal Buyback Act,” on January 9, 2025. Indeed, the project was presented this Thursday under his editorship, and already has the signatures of 15 of his colleagues.
In recent weeks, Trump, who will assume his second presidential term on January 20, has expressed his discontent with the alleged high tolls and Chinese control over the Canal, arguments that have been repeatedly denied by the Panamanian government.
“President Trump is right to consider buying back the Panama Canal. China's interest and presence in the canal is a cause for concern,” Johnson said in a statement.“The United States
must project strength abroad – owning and operating the Panama Canal could be an important step toward a stronger America and a safer world.”
The bill would empower the president, along with the Secretary of State, to“initiate and carry out negotiations with the authorities of the Government of the Republic of Panama for the purpose of reacquiring the Panama Canal,” according to the draft obtained by
The Hill.

In addition, the President is required to submit a report within 180 days of the bill's approval, detailing the progress of negotiations, potential challenges and expected outcomes. During a recent press conference at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Trump did not rule out using economic or military measures to regain control of the Panama Canal, as well as to acquire Greenland, another territory he has expressed interest in buying. However, the proposal faces resistance even within the Republican Party, according to The Hill. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, called Trump's ambitions aspirational.“I think he was speaking with wishes rather than a concrete plan,” he said. For his part, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino flatly rejected any possibility of renegotiating the sovereignty of the Canal.“There is no possibility, under this president, of discussing anything that would redefine the legal-political reality of the Panama Canal in Panamanian hands. The Canal is Panamanian, period,” said Mulino. Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha, pictured below, also condemned Trump's statements.“The sovereignty of the Panama Canal is an irreversible and non-negotiable achievement. The only hands that control the canal are Panamanian and that will continue to be the case,” he stressed.

“For Panamanians, the Panama Canal is incomparable,” said Martínez Acha on January 9, who stressed that for the country the interoceanic route“is the religion that unites us.” “It is an asset of the Panamanians that successfully serves the entire international community, especially the United States,” he added. According to Martínez Acha, the port that benefits most from the Canal is the port of Houston.“The Canal is an asset of ours, at the service of the international community, without any privileges for anyone,” he said. According to The Hill, Johnson plans to introduce the proposal, dubbed the“Panama Canal Buyback Act.”

In recent weeks, Trump, who will assume his second presidential term on January 20, has expressed his discontent with the alleged high tolls and Chinese control over the Canal, arguments that have been repeatedly denied by the Panamanian government. President José Raúl Mulino, who was present this Thursday at the events of the January 9, 1964 event, which motivated the signing of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties so that the Canal, then controlled by the United States, would pass into Panamanian hands, also referred to the case. “Thanks to what happened here in 1964, we have a Panamanian Canal, complete sovereignty at the national level, and it will remain that way. We will have to fight for it to keep it Panamanian, just like the Canal. No one can try to undermine that reality. The Canal is and will continue to be Panamanian,” he declared.

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