Social organisations today called for permanent vigilance in the face of threats by the new US president, Donald Trump, to retake control of the Panama Canal.

The tycoon and future tenant of the White House challenged Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino the day before, who said on national television that «every square metre of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belongs to Panama, and will continue to belong to Panama»,

With a terse and ironic phrase, «We’ll see about that», accompanied by an American flag flying over the waters of the inter-oceanic waterway with the inscription «Welcome to the United States Canal», Trump replied to Mulino’s message.

The response represents a continuation of the spiral of tension between the politicians, as last Saturday Trump threatened to retake control of the interoceanic waterway, accusing the Central American country of charging excessive fees for using the navigation crossing and of China’s interference in canal operations.

The Panamanian president said in his speech that the 1977 Torrijos-Carter Treaties «agreed to the dissolution of the former canal zone, recognising Panamanian sovereignty and the complete surrender of the canal to Panama, which ended on 31 December 1999».

Mulino also assured that the tariffs his country uses for the use of the canal «are not a whim». «They are established in a public manner and in an open hearing, considering market conditions, international competition, operating costs and the maintenance needs of the inter-oceanic waterway.

He also recalled that on 31 December it will be 25 years since the canal has been administered by Panamanians.

On the other hand, he said that the Canal is not controlled directly or indirectly by China, the European Commission, the United States or any other power.

In this regard, he stressed that the Canal will remain in Panamanian hands as an inalienable patrimony of the nation, guaranteeing its use for the peaceful and uninterrupted transit of ships of all nations, as established by the Constitution and the Treaty of Neutrality.

For their part, the social and political organisations rejected the threats of the new occupant of the Oval Office to take the inter-oceanic canal away from the Central American nation if it does not comply with Washington’s demands.

The leader of the Sindicato Único Nacional de Trabajadores de la Industria de la Construcción y Similares (Suntracs), Saúl Méndez, responded that «This is our territory. It is our sovereignty and it is the self-determination of our people».

He pointed out that «no invading gringo, no gringo with delusions of power, like Trump, can threaten Panama, its territorial integrity, its sovereignty and its self-determination. The children of the people, the Panamanian people, we will defend our nation.

Likewise, the political party in formation Frente Amplio por la Democracia (FAD) issued a statement in which it repudiated Trump’s threatening statements and pointed out that it is an affront to the heroes and martyrs of the struggle for sovereignty 25 years after the reversion of the Canal.

They warned that the CEO of First Quantum Minerals (FQM), Tristan Pascall – as if Panama were a Yankee colony – asked Trump to intervene to reopen the (copper) mine, «whose contract was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Justice just over a year ago» after months of massive protests against mining.

According to the FAD, «with this government, Panama seems to be for sale», which is why it called for permanent vigilance and mobilisation to defend sovereignty and popular interests.

Meanwhile, the National Front for the Defence of Economic and Social Rights (Frenadeso), considered Trump’s threat to be serious, «given his interest in violating international law, in stirring up even more serious geopolitical conflicts and in continuing to use our country as a ramp of aggression against other peoples».

They questioned President José Raúl Mulino for using a narrative in which Panama is placed as part of the backyard of the United States and criticised him for justifying the cowardly and savage US invasion of Panamanian soil in December 1989.

They considered that Washington humiliates and disrespects Panama because of the «the sell-out calibre of the corporate government we have today (…) Because they see the rulers in office as mere puppets or puppets».

Reflecting on the profound crisis and the widespread popular discontent in the country, they considered the historic moment to be very dangerous.

«We patriots cannot rule out any kind of way out on the part of the oligarchy in power», given the government’s exhaustion and the oligarchy’s desperation to make huge profits.

They asserted that the government and the oligarchs «do not mind acting outside the Constitution and national laws», which is why they called on the people and their organisations to declare themselves on high alert to defend the homeland and the interests of the people.

Several governments in the region have spoken out in favour of Panama, including Colombian President Gustavo Petro.

«Until the last consequences I will stand by Panama and defend its sovereignty. If the new US government wants to talk business, we will talk business, on an equal footing, and for the benefit of our peoples, but dignity will never be negotiated,» he remarked.

Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodríguez, also wrote on the social network X that the Panama Canal belongs solely to that nation.

«The Monroe Doctrine is a neo-colonial weapon against Our America. It threatens Panama’s sovereignty and the peace and security of the hemisphere,» he warned.