Donald Trump says ‘reclaiming’ Panama Canal after US firm BlackRock buys port stakes, Panama says ‘lying again’

Panama President Jose Raul Mulino has slammed American President Donald Trump for his “reclaiming” Panama Canal remark after Hong Kong firm Hutchison agreed to sell its lucrative Panama Canal ports to a US-led consortium.

CK Hutchison Holdings announced plans to sell a 90 per cent stake in the Panama Ports Company (PPC) and several other non-Chinese ports to a group led by asset manager BlackRock. The sellers will receive $19 billion in cash, the company said.

Reacting to Donald Trump's “reclaiming” claims, the Panama president accused the US President of “lying once again”.

“Once again, President Trump is lying. The Panama Canal is not in the process of recovery,” Mulino wrote on X, adding, “I reject, on behalf of Panama and all Panamanians, this new affront to the truth and to our dignity as a nation.”

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Earlier in the day, Donald Trump said his administration has started the process of taking the Panama Canal back.

In a speech to Congress, Donald Trump said, “To further enhance our national security, my administration will be reclaiming the Panama Canal, and we've already started doing it.”

“We're taking it back.”

Panama Canal was built by the US in the early 20th century and handed over to Panama in 1999. Donald Trump has long threatened to take the Canal back from Panama, claiming and complaining about China's control over it.

“China's running the Panama Canal. That was not given to China, that was given to Panama, foolishly, but they violated the agreement, and we're going to take it back, or something very powerful is going to happen,” Donald Trump told reporters.

(With agency inputs)