Marco Rubio

A few years ago, Panama made a decision that they were going to de-recognize Taiwan and align with Beijing. And with that came all sorts of money that was provided to the then president's administration for projects and things of that nature, but also Chinese investment. And one of the main investments they have is in these two port facilities on both sides of the canal.

And all kinds of other infrastructure, cranes and the like. And so people will argue, well, that's not China, that's a company based in Hong Kong. Well, a company based in Hong Kong is the government of China. You are not a company in China if the Chinese government doesn't control you. It's similar to the argument about ByteDance and TikTok, which is-

And all kinds of other infrastructure, cranes and the like. And so people will argue, well, that's not China, that's a company based in Hong Kong. Well, a company based in Hong Kong is the government of China. You are not a company in China if the Chinese government doesn't control you. It's similar to the argument about ByteDance and TikTok, which is-

And all kinds of other infrastructure, cranes and the like. And so people will argue, well, that's not China, that's a company based in Hong Kong. Well, a company based in Hong Kong is the government of China. You are not a company in China if the Chinese government doesn't control you. It's similar to the argument about ByteDance and TikTok, which is-

Every company that operates from China or Hong Kong, which is controlled by China, more than ever controlled by China, it's no longer autonomous. They have to do whatever the government tells them. And if the government of China in a conflict tells them shut down the Panama Canal, they will have to. And in fact, I have zero doubt that they have contingency planning to do so.

Every company that operates from China or Hong Kong, which is controlled by China, more than ever controlled by China, it's no longer autonomous. They have to do whatever the government tells them. And if the government of China in a conflict tells them shut down the Panama Canal, they will have to. And in fact, I have zero doubt that they have contingency planning to do so.

Every company that operates from China or Hong Kong, which is controlled by China, more than ever controlled by China, it's no longer autonomous. They have to do whatever the government tells them. And if the government of China in a conflict tells them shut down the Panama Canal, they will have to. And in fact, I have zero doubt that they have contingency planning to do so.

That is a direct threat. So it's a technicality. But in reality, if China wanted to obstruct

That is a direct threat. So it's a technicality. But in reality, if China wanted to obstruct

That is a direct threat. So it's a technicality. But in reality, if China wanted to obstruct

traffic in the panama canal they could that's a fact and it's my view that's a violation of the treaty agreement and that's what president trump is raising and we're going to address that topic it's one of deep concern that dynamic cannot continue not simply because we built it at great cost and lives and treasure but because it is contrary to our national interest.

traffic in the panama canal they could that's a fact and it's my view that's a violation of the treaty agreement and that's what president trump is raising and we're going to address that topic it's one of deep concern that dynamic cannot continue not simply because we built it at great cost and lives and treasure but because it is contrary to our national interest.

traffic in the panama canal they could that's a fact and it's my view that's a violation of the treaty agreement and that's what president trump is raising and we're going to address that topic it's one of deep concern that dynamic cannot continue not simply because we built it at great cost and lives and treasure but because it is contrary to our national interest.

It is not in the national interest of the United States to have a canal we paid for and we built used as a leverage and a weapon against us. That can't happen. So what's the solution? Well, that's what we're going to have to talk about. And I think the president's pretty clear he wants to administer the canal again. Obviously, the Panamanians are not big fans of that idea.

It is not in the national interest of the United States to have a canal we paid for and we built used as a leverage and a weapon against us. That can't happen. So what's the solution? Well, that's what we're going to have to talk about. And I think the president's pretty clear he wants to administer the canal again. Obviously, the Panamanians are not big fans of that idea.

It is not in the national interest of the United States to have a canal we paid for and we built used as a leverage and a weapon against us. That can't happen. So what's the solution? Well, that's what we're going to have to talk about. And I think the president's pretty clear he wants to administer the canal again. Obviously, the Panamanians are not big fans of that idea.

But that message has been brought very clear. And there are a lot of other areas we can work very closely with Panama on. I mean, their government generally is pro-American on a number of fronts. But this is a core national interest for us. We can work together on a lot of things, and there are a lot of things we can work with them on that are very positive on migration.

But that message has been brought very clear. And there are a lot of other areas we can work very closely with Panama on. I mean, their government generally is pro-American on a number of fronts. But this is a core national interest for us. We can work together on a lot of things, and there are a lot of things we can work with them on that are very positive on migration.

But that message has been brought very clear. And there are a lot of other areas we can work very closely with Panama on. I mean, their government generally is pro-American on a number of fronts. But this is a core national interest for us. We can work together on a lot of things, and there are a lot of things we can work with them on that are very positive on migration.

And they can be very helpful on all sorts of things. And I hope we'll get resolution to those very soon. But that does not in any way replace the core reality that the Panama Canal, we cannot allow any foreign power, particularly China, to hold that kind of potential control over that they do. That just can't continue. But what could they do?