President Trump said on Saturday that American commercial and military vessels would not have to pay to travel the Panama Canal and the Suez Canal.
“Both military and commercial American ships should be allowed to travel free of charge through the Panama Canal and the Suez Canal! These canals do not exist without the United States,” Trump wrote on Saturday. post A true society.
The president added that he asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to “take care of this situation quickly and commemorate it!”
Oka reached out to the State Department for comment.
Trump has for months said he wants to reclaim the Panama Canal from Panama, claiming that the trade routes are controlled by China. He has not ruled out using military action to take over the canal, and told reporters in January that “economic security” would require a corridor before being sworn in as president.
Panama’s President Jose Raul Murino has continued to say that the canal will remain under the control of the country. The Central American country has ruled the canals since 1999.
When he visited Panama earlier this month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegses said the US and Panama will work side-by-side to regain the canal from “Chinese influence.”
Trump also said on Saturday that US troops and commercial vessels should travel free of charge through the Suez Canal, an Egyptian waterway.
The canal that connects the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and divides Asia and Africa has been in operation since the second half of 1869. It represents an important trade route between Europe’s Asia and European countries.
The US Navy ships pass through the Suez Canal regularly.
Continuing attacks on ships by Yemen’s Houthi rebels have slowed global trade in recent months.
Intermediate 12 and 15 The proportion of world trade passes through the canal every year.
