Barely inaugurated president, Donald Trump vowed Monday to regain control of the Panama Canal, promising to ensure that the United States is once again “respected” in the world and putting forward a foreign policy focused on “the America First.”
In an inaugural speech lasting around thirty minutes with a resolutely offensive tone, the 47th president also posed as a “peacemaker”. “The legacy of which I will be most proud will be that of a peacemaker and a unifier,” he said.
“We will measure our success not only by the battles we win, but also by the wars we end and, perhaps more importantly, by the wars we never enter,” the Republican said, not long after. after taking the oath.
He welcomed the fact that “one day before (his) taking office, the hostages from the Middle East returned to their families”, referring to the release of three Israeli hostages released on Sunday from the hands of Hamas after the entry a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement comes into force.
This reference to the hostages was the only one welcomed by outgoing Democratic President Joe Biden, present at his side for the inauguration ceremony at the Capitol, seat of the US Congress.
Mr. Trump has promised to end the war in Ukraine by seeking compromises, which contrasts with the approach of Mr. Biden, who firmly supported kyiv against Moscow after the Russian invasion in February 2022.
– “Gulf of America –
But President Trump was also threatening, saying he wanted to “retake” control of the Panama Canal built by the United States and transferred to Panama in 1999. “The objective of our agreement and the spirit of our treaty have been totally violated,” he said.
“We have been very mistreated by this senseless gift that should never have been given. The promise that Panama made to us was not kept,” he said, emphasizing that the American ships were ” seriously overtaxed.
“And above all, China operates the Panama Canal, and we did not give it to China, we gave it to Panama. And we are going to take it back,” asserted the American president.
-His Panamanian counterpart José Raul Mulino immediately replied that “the canal belongs and will continue to belong to Panama”.
“We will exercise the law that protects us, the legal basis of the treaty, the dignity that distinguishes us and the strength that international law gives us,” he added on his X account.
Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants to take back the Panama Canal, built by the United States and inaugurated in 1914.
He criticized then-President Jimmy Carter’s 1977 deal that resulted in control of the canal being transferred to Panama in 1999.
The head of American diplomacy designate, Marco Rubio, warned last week during his confirmation hearing in the Senate that China, through its influence, could effectively close the Panama Canal to the United States in the event of a crisis.
“This is a legitimate problem that needs to be addressed,” Mr. Rubio said.
President Trump also said the United States would begin referring to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America.” He announced a series of drastic measures to combat the “invasion” of migrants in the United States, including deploying the American army to the southern border with Mexico.
“America will return to its rightful place as the greatest, most powerful and most respected nation on the planet, inspiring the awe and admiration of the entire world,” concluded President Trump, whose return home Blanche is seen with concern across the world.
His first term, from 2017 to 2021, was marked by a succession of internal political crises and diplomatic clashes.
