Latin American leaders united in defense of Panama on Monday after US President-elect Donald Trump threatened to re-impose US control over the Panama Canal, a major global shipping route located in the Central American nation.
What is the Panama Canal?
The Panama Canal is an 82-kilometre (51 mi) artificial waterway that connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans through Panama, saving ships thousands of miles and weeks of travel around the stormy, icy southern tip of South America.
The journey for ships traveling from Los Angeles to New York is approximately 8,000 miles (about 22 days) shorter via the canal than traveling through the Strait of Magellan near Tierra del Fuego, the archipelago that embraces southern Chile and Argentina. .
The canal carries ships through Gatun Lake, approximately 26 meters (85 ft) above sea level, through a series of interconnecting locks. Each ship transit requires approximately 200 million liters (53 million gallons) of fresh water.
canal construction
Spanish colonists began studying the construction of an inter-oceanic canal cutting the isthmus at its narrowest point, in southern Central America, as early as the 1530s. But it was not until 1878 that Colombia – which then counted Panama as a province – signed a concession with French engineers.
The French effort ultimately failed, going bankrupt in 1899. About 22,000 workers lost their lives on the project, many from disease and accidents.
In 1903 the US asked Colombia for a permanent concession for a canal, which rejected the offer. In response, the US supported the independence of Panama, which was declared on 3 November.
Three days later, Panama’s ambassador to Washington signed a treaty giving the US authority to construct and administer the canal indefinitely. The US paid Panama $10 million for the rights and later an annual sum of $250,000. Many Panamanians condemned the treaty as a violation of their new sovereignty.
American construction was largely carried out by African-Panamanian and Caribbean workers, more than 5,000 of whom died before the canal opened in 1914.
handover
During the 20th century, US–Panama tensions worsened and protests against US control of the canal increased, particularly after the Suez Canal Crisis of 1956, when the British and French invaded Egypt after nationalizing the Suez Canal. Was planned, which was stopped after American pressure. ,
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed a treaty with Panamanian military leader Omar Torrijos that gave Panama independent control of the canal and guaranteed the waterway’s permanent neutrality.
It came into effect on December 31, 1999. The canal has since been managed by the Panama Canal Authority of the Government of Panama, and remains a major source of income for the country.
recent developments
Climate change has contributed to increasing drought that has affected water levels in the lakes that feed the canal, forcing the canal authority to limit transit as it balances the water needs of Panamanians.
On Sunday, Trump threatened to reimpose US control, citing excessive fees for using the canal and the risk of Chinese influence. A subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings has long managed two ports near the canal’s entrances.
Trump said of the canal, “It was given to Panama and the people of Panama, but there are provisions.”
“If both the moral and legal principles of this generous gesture of giving are not followed, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us completely, quickly and without question.”
Panama’s response
Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino rejected Trump’s threat. He said the canal’s tariffs had been carefully and transparently evaluated, and had helped maintain the canal and expand it in 2016, boosting traffic and global trade.
“Every square meter of the Panama Canal and its surrounding area belongs to Panama and will always remain so,” he said in a statement Sunday. “The sovereignty and independence of our country cannot be compromised.”
“The canal is not under the direct or indirect control of China, the European Community, the United States or any other power,” Mulino said.
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