The president of Panama responds to Trump’s “invasion” issue by saying, “Be serious”

In response to President Donald Trump’s declaration that he would retake the Panama Canal, Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino remarked “be serious, be serious” when asked in Davos on Wednesday whether he was worried that the United States would invade.

After participating in a panel discussion discussing Latin America’s “Faultlines” at the World Economic Forum’s annual summit in the Swiss resort, Mulino declined to respond to more questions.

Invoking the 19th-century expansionist theory of “Manifest Destiny” in his inaugural speech on Monday, Trump reiterated his desire for the United States to retake the canal, a vital commerce route.

Trump did not elaborate on his plans to retake the canal, which is an ally’s sovereign property. However, he has previously refused to rule out the use of military action, which has angered both Washington’s allies and adversaries in Latin America.

Additionally, he reiterated earlier charges against Panama that it had broken agreements to hand up the crucial canal to China in 1999 and had given it up for use, both of which the Panamanian government has strongly refuted.

Mulino stated on X on Monday that the canal “is and will continue to be Panamanian” and that Panama has managed it properly for global trade, including that of the United States.

The government rejected “in its entirety everything Mr. Trump said, first because it was false and second because the Panama Canal belongs to Panama and will continue to belong to Panama,” Mulino reiterated during the WEF session.

He stated, “The Panama Canal was not a concession or a gift from the United States,” saying that a number of treaties dating back to 1903 created it.

For many years, the United States controlled the area around the passage and constructed the majority of the canal.

But in 1977, the United States and Panama reached two agreements that made it possible for Panama to regain complete control of the canal. Following a phase of shared management, the United States turned it over in 1999.