Protesters have gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Panama City to stand against President-elect Donald Trump’s threat to take back the Panama Canal.
Demonstrators reportedly chanted, “Trump, animal, leave the canal alone” and carried signs saying, “Donald Trump, public enemy of Panama.”
One protester, Jorge Guzman, told AFP, “The (Panamanian) people have shown that they are capable of recovering their territory and we are not going to give it up again.”
Saul Mendez, a construction union leader involved in the protest, said, “Panama is a sovereign territory and the canal here is Panamanian.” He added, “Donald Trump and his imperial delusion cannot claim even a single centimeter of land in Panama.”
Warning: The video below contains explicit language.
“The United States has a vested interest in the secure, efficient, and reliable operation of the Panama Canal, and that was always understood. We would and will NEVER let it fall into the wrong hands! It was not given for the benefit of others, but merely as a token of cooperation with us and Panama. If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question. To the Officials of Panama, please be guided accordingly!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino said in a video statement that “every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belong to Panama, and will continue to be.” He noted that the “sovereignty and independence of our country are not negotiable.”
