Make Monroe Doctrine Great Again? Trump Threatens to Take Back Panama Canal Amid Chinese Takeover Fears
23rd December 2024
President-elect Donald Trump seems poised to revive the Monroe Doctrine, signaling a renewed focus that the US will continue Western Hemisphere domination for decades and will no longer tolerate any other competition in controlling strategic maritime chokepoints or natural resources in the region.
On Saturday evening, Trump vented on Truth Social how “President Jimmy Carter foolishly gave away” the Panama Canal for one dollar. He explained, “It was solely for Panama to manage, not China or anyone else.”
The core issue is that China now controls two of the five ports adjacent to the canal: Balboa on the Pacific and Cristobal on the Caribbean. While the US spent three decades engaged in nation-building activities across the Middle East, China transformed Panama into a geographic and commercial hub, strategically positioning itself for political, economic, and military advancement.