With the expansion of Chinese influence in the waterway, the Canal will likely continue to be a point of tension in U. China does not operate the Canal, it only manages the two ports on either end, meaning it does not interact or influence all goods transiting the Canal.
For example, the Panama Ministry of Public Works' plans for the announced fourth bridge over the Canal was scaled back in In , U. In fact, numerous initiated projects have been canceled, postponed, or scaled back during the current administration of President Laurentino Cortizo.
Q5: How can the U. A5: The Panama Canal remains a central piece of the U. Through this policy framework, the Panama Canal can be tied into a broader Central America strategy, due to its deep ties to Panamanian economic prosperity as well as security and rule of law elements.
A strategy that seeks to increase U. Given that large fractions of Chinese economic profits, and thus business relations, are driven by a select few families , the United States will need to craft a unique approach to reinforcing its own presence in Panama and particularly around the Canal. Here too, the United States can engage on security issues, supporting inspections training and anti-trafficking operations in the Canal to combat ongoing drug trafficking and smuggling.
The integration of the Panama Canal into a broader Central America strategy will require increased U. Daniel F. Runde is senior vice president, director of the Project on Prosperity and Development, and holds the William A. Its research is nonpartisan and nonproprietary. CSIS does not take specific policy positions. Accordingly, all views, positions, and conclusions expressed in this publication should be understood to be solely those of the author s.
All rights reserved. Skip to main content. Critical Questions. In spite of such setbacks, American interest in a canal continued unabated. Following heated debate over the location of the proposed canal, on June 19, , the U.
Senate voted in favor of building the canal through Panama. President Roosevelt responded by dispatching U. Colombian troops were unable to negotiate the jungles of the Darien Strait and Panama declared independence on November 3, The newly declared Republic of Panama immediately named Philippe Bunau-Varilla a French engineer who had been involved in the earlier de Lesseps canal attempt as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. The United States also agreed to guarantee the independence of Panama.
The two men were able to convince Carter of the importance of a new treaty, and when he took office, Carter made concluding negotiations with Panama a priority and named Linowitz co-negotiator with Bunker.
Despite the fact that both Carter and Torrijos were eager to conclude a treaty, many obstacles remained. A treaty must be ratified by the Senate with at least a two-thirds majority in order to take effect. Many Senators were opposed to giving Panama control over the Canal Zone.
Thurmond, who was born twelve years before the Canal was built, had a different perspective than the Carter administration. Thurmond and other conservatives also distrusted Torrijos, whom they considered to be pro-communist. The Carter administration formulated a strategy to conclude debate over the Canal and to gain Senate ratification.
Torrijos hosted U. Senators in Panama, where he stressed that he was neither an enemy of the United States nor a communist. Actor John Wayne, both a conservative and a friend of Torrijos, also endorsed the negotiations. The negotiators decided that their best chance for ratification was to submit two treaties to the U. The first, called The Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal, or the Neutrality Treaty, stated that the United States could use its military to defend the Panama Canal against any threat to its neutrality, thus allowing perpetual U.
The second, called The Panama Canal Treaty, stated that the Panama Canal Zone would cease to exist on October 1, , and the Canal itself would be turned over to the Panamanians on December 31, These two treaties were signed on September 7, It took more than six months before the Senate voted.
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