Ari Shapiro

He thinks his country just had the bad luck to get caught between two giants, the U.S. and China. I think Mr. Trump has this psychosis with Chinese people. There aren't Chinese people in the canal, he says. What do you think will happen? I don't know, because he's obsessed with the Chinese people, Scott says. So back to China's role here.

He thinks his country just had the bad luck to get caught between two giants, the U.S. and China. I think Mr. Trump has this psychosis with Chinese people. There aren't Chinese people in the canal, he says. What do you think will happen? I don't know, because he's obsessed with the Chinese people, Scott says. So back to China's role here.

There is no truth to Trump's claim that China operates the canal. But a company based in Hong Kong called C.K. Hutchison Holdings operates two of the five ports surrounding the canal. We asked the company for an interview, and they declined. We also requested interviews with the canal authority, Secretary Rubio, the president of Panama, and the mayor of Panama City.

There is no truth to Trump's claim that China operates the canal. But a company based in Hong Kong called C.K. Hutchison Holdings operates two of the five ports surrounding the canal. We asked the company for an interview, and they declined. We also requested interviews with the canal authority, Secretary Rubio, the president of Panama, and the mayor of Panama City.

There is no truth to Trump's claim that China operates the canal. But a company based in Hong Kong called C.K. Hutchison Holdings operates two of the five ports surrounding the canal. We asked the company for an interview, and they declined. We also requested interviews with the canal authority, Secretary Rubio, the president of Panama, and the mayor of Panama City.

The fact that none of them agreed may be a sign of just how delicate this moment is. So to clarify some of the facts here, I called Ambassador John Feeley. He's a career diplomat and former U.S. ambassador to Panama. Appointed late in the Obama administration, he stayed in the role for two years under Trump.

The fact that none of them agreed may be a sign of just how delicate this moment is. So to clarify some of the facts here, I called Ambassador John Feeley. He's a career diplomat and former U.S. ambassador to Panama. Appointed late in the Obama administration, he stayed in the role for two years under Trump.

The fact that none of them agreed may be a sign of just how delicate this moment is. So to clarify some of the facts here, I called Ambassador John Feeley. He's a career diplomat and former U.S. ambassador to Panama. Appointed late in the Obama administration, he stayed in the role for two years under Trump.

He still knows lots of people in Panama, and he says this controversy caught them all off guard.

He still knows lots of people in Panama, and he says this controversy caught them all off guard.

He still knows lots of people in Panama, and he says this controversy caught them all off guard.

He says he's been warning about China's influence in Latin America since at least 2017.

He says he's been warning about China's influence in Latin America since at least 2017.

He says he's been warning about China's influence in Latin America since at least 2017.

So without being inflammatory, what is the threat that China poses to the United States in Panama?

So without being inflammatory, what is the threat that China poses to the United States in Panama?

So without being inflammatory, what is the threat that China poses to the United States in Panama?

He says the threat from China is more subtle. It's about economic engagement, and it stretches far beyond the Panama Canal to places all over the region where China is investing and the U.S. is not. In protests all over the city, Panamanians made their feelings clear. In one, construction workers burned an American flag in the middle of a major street.

He says the threat from China is more subtle. It's about economic engagement, and it stretches far beyond the Panama Canal to places all over the region where China is investing and the U.S. is not. In protests all over the city, Panamanians made their feelings clear. In one, construction workers burned an American flag in the middle of a major street.

He says the threat from China is more subtle. It's about economic engagement, and it stretches far beyond the Panama Canal to places all over the region where China is investing and the U.S. is not. In protests all over the city, Panamanians made their feelings clear. In one, construction workers burned an American flag in the middle of a major street.