Canal Concerns: Worries for Panama
The Panama Canal is of critical, logistical importance to Caribbean and Latin American trade. The considered actions of President-elect Donald Trump who has been looking North and South to find ways to secure the geopolitical interests of the United States is of regional interest.
Trump's concerns over the Panama Canal in the south, it appears, accelerated when Panama cut diplomatic ties with Taiwan and established relations directly with China and subsequently becoming the first Latin American country to join Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
Latinamericancargo.com notes, "The Panama Canal’s importance cannot be overstated. By connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, it serves as a vital artery for global commerce, facilitating trade for over 160 countries and handling nearly 500 million tons of cargo annually."
Under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI ), a global strategy being executed by China since 2013, China has been investing in some 150 countries and international organizations, targeting land corridors linked by road, rail, energy, and digital infrastructure. The project also focuses on the development of ports.
Notably, two seaports on either side of the Panama Canal are managed by a Hong Kong-based company. Trump, recalling that the canal is a product of American engineering, has proposed retaking control of the geopolitically important waterway.
Trump remains assertive in calls for American control of not just the Panama Canal but also the annexation of Canada and Greenland. Recently he said that the Panama Canal was charging American commercial and naval vessels “exorbitant prices and rates of passage” as a reason for annexation. He believes that China controls the canal.
Daniel Funde and Amy during in a Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) publication indicate that the United States remains the top user of the Canal—in 2019, 66 percent of the cargo traffic transiting the Canal began or ended its journey at a U.S. port; cargo from or destined to China made up 13 percent of Canal traffic.
“Still, China is the main source of products going through the Colón Free Trade Zone and its increasing presence in and around the Canal has made the waterway a flashpoint for U.S.-China competition over spheres of influence,” they note.
CSIS says that following the Canal’s expansion in 2016, the waterway annually registers nearly 14,000 transits, a value equal to six per cent of global trade. The Canal’s global shipping role increased amid disruption of global supply chains during the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was the United States that built the canal which connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean and it remained under U.S. control until, in 1977, when President Jimmy Carter signed the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which mandated neutrality of the canal and handed management over to Panama in 2000.
Trump, the essential deal maker is ultimately seeking to reduce threats to U.S. national security, but, to date, Panama has no interest in making a deal.
Leader of the Panama Canal Authority, Ricaurte Vásquez Morales has said that accusations that China is running the Canal are unfounded noting also that under existing agreements, telling the Wall Street Journal “we cannot discriminate for the Chinese, or the Americans, or anyone else.”
Meanwhile, however, House Republicans have already drafted legislation to authorize the president to purchase the canal and return it to U.S. control.
Writer Momero Herrera at Latinamericancargo.com comments, "Any attempt to reclaim control would violate both the UN Charter and international law, likely provoking widespread condemnation from U.S. allies. More importantly, Panama’s successful management record demonstrates its capability to maintain the canal’s efficiency and neutrality."
Latinamericancargo.com notes, "The Panama Canal’s importance cannot be overstated. By connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, it serves as a vital artery for global commerce, facilitating trade for over 160 countries and handling nearly 500 million tons of cargo annually."
Under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI ), a global strategy being executed by China since 2013, China has been investing in some 150 countries and international organizations, targeting land corridors linked by road, rail, energy, and digital infrastructure. The project also focuses on the development of ports.
Notably, two seaports on either side of the Panama Canal are managed by a Hong Kong-based company. Trump, recalling that the canal is a product of American engineering, has proposed retaking control of the geopolitically important waterway.
Trump remains assertive in calls for American control of not just the Panama Canal but also the annexation of Canada and Greenland. Recently he said that the Panama Canal was charging American commercial and naval vessels “exorbitant prices and rates of passage” as a reason for annexation. He believes that China controls the canal.
Daniel Funde and Amy during in a Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) publication indicate that the United States remains the top user of the Canal—in 2019, 66 percent of the cargo traffic transiting the Canal began or ended its journey at a U.S. port; cargo from or destined to China made up 13 percent of Canal traffic.
“Still, China is the main source of products going through the Colón Free Trade Zone and its increasing presence in and around the Canal has made the waterway a flashpoint for U.S.-China competition over spheres of influence,” they note.
CSIS says that following the Canal’s expansion in 2016, the waterway annually registers nearly 14,000 transits, a value equal to six per cent of global trade. The Canal’s global shipping role increased amid disruption of global supply chains during the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was the United States that built the canal which connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean and it remained under U.S. control until, in 1977, when President Jimmy Carter signed the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, which mandated neutrality of the canal and handed management over to Panama in 2000.
Trump, the essential deal maker is ultimately seeking to reduce threats to U.S. national security, but, to date, Panama has no interest in making a deal.
Leader of the Panama Canal Authority, Ricaurte Vásquez Morales has said that accusations that China is running the Canal are unfounded noting also that under existing agreements, telling the Wall Street Journal “we cannot discriminate for the Chinese, or the Americans, or anyone else.”
Meanwhile, however, House Republicans have already drafted legislation to authorize the president to purchase the canal and return it to U.S. control.
Writer Momero Herrera at Latinamericancargo.com comments, "Any attempt to reclaim control would violate both the UN Charter and international law, likely provoking widespread condemnation from U.S. allies. More importantly, Panama’s successful management record demonstrates its capability to maintain the canal’s efficiency and neutrality."
Photo credit: facts.net
Caribbean Money Daily
Caribbeanmoney.blogspot.com
Follow us for breaking news
Email austanny@yahoo.com
.JPG)
Comments
Post a Comment