Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino criticized U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday, accusing him of making false claims about the Panama Canal during his address to Congress.
Trump stated that his administration was “reclaiming” the canal, referring to a recent deal in which a U.S.-led consortium, headed by investment management firm BlackRock Inc., secured a controlling stake in a company previously held by a Chinese group operating ports at both ends of the canal.
Panama’s government maintains that it has always had full control over the canal and dismissed the notion that the Hong Kong-based company’s port operations equated to Chinese control over the waterway. As a result, officials argued that the sale to a U.S.-based firm does not represent any kind of U.S. “reclaiming” of the canal. Panama described the deal as a private business transaction.
In a statement posted on X, Mulino pushed back against any suggestion that the deal resulted from U.S. pressure. “I reject in the name of Panama and all Panamanians this new affront to the truth and our dignity as a nation,” he wrote, accusing Trump of “lying again.”
Trump has repeatedly expressed his belief that the United States should not have handed over control of the Panama Canal to Panama. Since his campaign, he has argued that the U.S. should reclaim the canal, claiming that the country is being overcharged for its use.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino in early February, asserting that China was influencing the operations of the Panama Canal. The discussion centered on a Chinese consortium managing the ports, but Panama denied that China had any control over the canal itself.
“Cooperation between our governments is based on clear agreements regarding mutual interests,” Mulino stated. “This has nothing to do with ‘reclaiming the canal’ or undermining our national sovereignty.”
On Tuesday, CK Hutchison Holdings announced plans to sell its entire stake in Hutchison Port Holdings and Hutchison Port Group Holdings to a BlackRock-led consortium. The deal is valued at nearly $23 billion, including $5 billion in debt.
The deal still requires approval from Panama’s government.
The United States originally built the Panama Canal in the early 20th century to improve the movement of commercial and military ships between its coasts. Control of the canal was transferred to Panama on December 31, 1999, under a treaty signed in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter. Former President Donald Trump has criticized the agreement, arguing that Carter “foolishly” gave the canal away.
Frank Sixt, co-managing director of CK Hutchison, described the deal as “the result of a rapid, discrete, but competitive process” that attracted numerous bids and offers of interest.
“I want to emphasize that this transaction is purely commercial and completely unrelated to recent political discussions about the Panama Ports,” Sixt stated.