The Panama Canal will remain in Panamanian hands and open to trade from all countries, according to the waterway's administrator, who rejected President-elect Donald Trump's insistence that the United States should take over the canal.
Ricote Vázquez rejected President Trump's claim that China controls the canal's operations, saying that creating an exception to the current rules for operating the canal would lead to “confusion.”
He said the Chinese companies operating at ports on both ends of the canal were part of a Hong Kong consortium that won the bid in a 1997 bidding process. It added that US and Taiwanese companies were operating at other ports along the canal as well.
President Trump has even suggested that the United States should regain control of the canal, and has not ruled out using military force to do so.
“We may have to do something,” President Trump said Tuesday. “The Panama Canal is extremely important to our country,” Trump said, calling tolls on the canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, “ridiculous.”
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino has vowed that the canal will remain in Panamanian hands.
Vázquez emphasized that the Panama Canal is open to commerce from all countries.
Vázquez added that the canal does not allow special treatment for U.S.-flagged ships because of the neutrality treaty. “The most sensible and efficient way to do this is to maintain established rules.”
Requests for exceptions are usually denied because the process is clear and there should be no arbitrary changes, he said. The only exception to the neutrality treaty is American warships, which are granted expedited passage.
Approximately 70% of the maritime traffic that passes through the Panama Canal departs from or goes to USports.
The United States built the canal in the early 1900s, looking for a way to ease the passage of commercial and military vessels between coasts. Under a treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977, Washington relinquished control of the waterway to Panama on December 31, 1999.
Last month, President Trump told supporters: “We are being cheated on the Panama Canal.” He claimed the United States had “stupidly abandoned it.”
Regarding canal fees, Vázquez said a series of planned increases ended in one this month. He said any additional increases would be considered in the first half of this year and would go through a public comment process to provide certainty to customers' plans.
“There is no discrimination in rates,” he said. “The toll rules are uniform and clearly defined for all those passing through the canal.”
The canal, which relies on reservoirs to operate its locks, has been severely affected by the drought over the past two years, forcing it to significantly reduce its daily vessel traffic. With fewer ships using the canal each day, administrators have increased the fees they charge all shippers to reserve a slot.
This canal bisects Panama and runs 81 miles from end to end. This allows ships to avoid the long and costly voyage around Cape Horn at the tip of South America.
“This is a huge responsibility,” Vazquez said of Panama's management of the canal. “Take the case of the coronavirus. When the coronavirus arrived, the Canal took the necessary measures to protect its workforce, but at the same time kept the Canal open. The commitment is to keep the canal open.”
