'US Will Take Back Panama Canal From Chinese Influence': Pentagon Chief Hegseth

The US defence secretary also pledged to deepen security cooperation with Panamanian security forces and said China would "not be allowed to weaponize" the Panama canal.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said that Washington will take back the Panama Canal from the Chinese influence.

Source : X @foxnews

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday during a rare visit to the Central American nation that the United States will "take back" the Panama Canal from Chinese influence. 

Following talks with Panama's government, Hegseth pledged to deepen security cooperation with Panamanian security forces and said China would "not be allowed to weaponize" the canal by taking advantage of the commercial relationships of Chinese firms for espionage.

"Together, we will take back the Panama Canal from China's influence," Hegseth said, speaking at a pier renovated with US assistance in Panama City.

"China did not build this canal. China does not operate this canal and China will not weaponize this canal. Together with Panama in the lead, we will keep the canal secure and available for all nations," he said.

China did not build this canal.

China does not operate this canal.

and China will not weaponize this canal.

Together, we will take back the canal from China’s influence. pic.twitter.com/CiFCOJJFw6

— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) April 8, 2025

The Pentagon chief also praised President Mulino, saying his government understood "the threat from China".  

Over 40 percent of US container traffic, valued at around  $270 billion a year, passes through the Panama Canal, accounting for more than two-thirds of vessels passing through the world's second-busiest interoceanic waterway each day.

Hegseth, who is the first US defense secretary in decades to visit Panama, flew over the canal in a Black Hawk helicopter after his meeting with the US and Panamanian security forces. He also visited the Miraflores lock, and was seen waving to sailors passing through on a container ship, the report said.

While Hegseth spoke about removing Chinese influence, Trump has spoken in broader terms and not ruled out using military force if needed. The defence secretary's trip follows rump administration's request for options from the US military to ensure access to the canal, which was built by it more than a century ago and handed over to Panama in 1999.

According to news agency Reuters, several current and former US officials and strategic experts say that the United States has found a willing partner in tackling Chinese influence in Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino.