THE United States sees the Panama Canal as a national security priority and wants to ensure no third country could influence its use, U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Daryl Caudle said on Monday (June 22).
Speaking in Panama City, Caudle said the canal was vital for moving U.S. naval forces between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and that Washington's relationship with Panama was key to safeguarding that access. He said the United States wanted to make sure countries such as China could not "dictate terms" for the use of the waterway or influence the movement of commerce and naval power. According to Caudle, cooperation and information-sharing between countries were essential to countering possible threats.
Relations between the Trump administration and Panama over the canal had been strained since Trump accused China of having undue influence over the waterway and threatened to reassert U.S. control. The dispute focused partly on Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, whose local subsidiary operated the Balboa and Cristobal ports at opposite ends of the canal.
In March 2025, CK Hutchison agreed to sell most of its global ports business, including a 90% stake in Panama Ports Company, to a BlackRock-led consortium in a US$22.8 billion deal that Trump hailed as part of a U.S. effort to "reclaim" influence over the canal. Panama later scrutinized the transaction and, in early 2026, moved to take control of the two terminals after its Supreme Court ruled the CK Hutchison concession unconstitutional.
The Panama Canal is one of the world's most important maritime routes and has long held strategic importance for U.S. commercial and military movement.
