US seals Panama deal to deploy troops to canal amid Trump’s takeover threats
But the pact stops short of allowing Washington to build its own bases on the isthmus, a move Panama warned would ‘set the country on fire’
US troops will be able to deploy to a string of bases along the Panama Canal under a joint deal seen by Agence France-Presse on Thursday, a major concession to President Donald Trump as he seeks to reestablish influence over the vital waterway.
The agreement, signed by top security officials from both countries, allows US military personnel to deploy to Panama-controlled facilities for training, exercises and “other activities”.
The deal stops short of allowing the United States to build its own permanent bases on the isthmus, a move that would be deeply unpopular with Panamanians and legally fraught.
But it gives the US broad sway to deploy an unspecified number of personnel to bases, some of which Washington built when it occupied the canal zone decades ago.
Trump, since returning to power in January, has repeatedly claimed that China has too much influence over the canal, which handles about 40 per cent of US container traffic and five per cent of world trade.
His administration has vowed to “take back” control of the strategic waterway that the US funded, built and controlled until 1999.