As he went to shake Trump’s hand, the president mentioned that in his experience there were “a lot of crooks” in Panama. De Dianous died in 2021 and never sought to publicize or draw attention to the moment.

Control of the Panama Canal, once a key U.S. presidential campaign issue for Ronald Reagan and an animating topic for people ranging from film legend John Wayne to an unpredictable Canadian-born U.S.

Donald Trump has refused to rule out using military force to retake the Panama Canal that was returned by the US to Panama decades ago.

President-elect Donald Trump’s threats over the Panama Canal may be rooted in his decades-long views of the country, forged by his own attempts to do business there. CNN’s Phil Mattingly reports.

The US is the biggest user of the Canal, but influence on its operations is dispersed among contracts with bidders internationally.