US White House Orders Pentagon to Prepare Military Options for 'Panama Canal Control'

Various Measures Under Review, from Military Cooperation to Armed Occupation

The Donald Trump administration in the United States is reportedly preparing military options to increase its influence over the Panama Canal.

AP Yonhap News

On the 13th (local time), NBC News reported, citing government officials, that the White House has ordered plans to increase the number of U.S. troops stationed in Panama from the current level of about 200.

Accordingly, the U.S. Southern Command is preparing various measures, including strengthening cooperation with public forces that act as military units in the unarmed country of Panama, up to the possibility of a military occupation of the Panama Canal.

The United States has a precedent of invading Panama in 1989 to arrest former dictator Manuel Noriega on drug trafficking charges. However, U.S. government officials explained that the use of force depends on the degree of cooperation with Panama's public forces.

The options reviewed by the U.S. military include a range of objectives from basic steps such as ensuring the safe passage of U.S. vessels to the reclamation of the Panama Canal. Increasing the U.S. military presence at each port located in Panama and direct U.S. military involvement in the technical operation of the canal are also under consideration.

Additionally, the idea of establishing a U.S. military training base in Panama is reportedly being reviewed. Before returning the operation rights of the Panama Canal to Panama in 1999, the U.S. operated an army training center in the region specialized in jungle warfare.

U.S. government officials say the likelihood of the U.S. forcibly reclaiming the Panama Canal is low. The main purpose of the White House's order to increase U.S. troops stationed in Panama is to weaken China's access to the canal in case of threats such as war against the United States.

Alvin Holsey, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, recently reported a draft strategy related to the Panama Canal to U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Secretary Hegseth is scheduled to visit Panama next month.

Panama is a country that gained independence from Colombia because of the canal. In 1903, when the Colombian Senate rejected a canal development treaty signed with the U.S. government, then-President Theodore Roosevelt used military force to help Panama's independence movement declare the founding of the country. Subsequently, the newly formed Panamanian government allowed the U.S. to hold the canal operation rights until they were returned in 1999.

Regarding this, President Trump stated, "Returning the canal, which was completed with enormous funds and at the cost of 38,000 American lives during construction, to Panama was a foolish act," expressing his position on the reclamation.

Earlier, President Trump criticized Panama for entrusting the operation rights of two ports to a Hong Kong-based company that cannot be free from the influence of the Chinese Communist Party, but recently, the U.S. asset management firm BlackRock acquired a 90% stake in the port operation rights from the Hong Kong-based company.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.