Trump Administration Seeks Options to Put Troops in Panama: Reports

The Trump administration in a memo to the Pentagon requested “military options” to ensure continued and absolute access to the Panama Canal, according to reports.

Newsweek reached out to the Pentagon and the Embassy of Panama in Washington, D.C., for comment by email on Thursday evening.

Why It Matters

President Donald Trump has made the Panama Canal one of his chief pieces of foreign policy. He surprised the world when he suggested that the U.S. would look to “demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full, and without question,” and he reiterated the issue during his Congressional address, saying he would try “reclaiming” the canal.

Around 14,000 ships pass through the Panama Canal each year, according to figures compiled by Statista. The narrow route, first opened by the U.S. in 1914, allows cargo vessels to travel between the American continents rather than having to circumnavigate them, hugely reducing transit times and costs.

What To Know

In a memo sent to the Pentagon and viewed by CNN and NBC News, the Trump administration has ordered the department to seek “credible military options” that would allow the U.S. to partner with local security forces and establish a footprint on the canal.

Two U.S. officials familiar with the planning told NBC that a less likely option—but one yet to be ruled out—would see the U.S. try to militarily seize the canal, but that will depend on how much the Panamanian security forces agree to partner with the U.S. The U.S. Southern Command is taking the lead on fulfilling the request, according to the reports.

The goal, according to the officials, is to increase the U.S. military presence and diminish Chinese influence.

CNN highlighted that the memo aligns this with the overall Trump administration emphasis on using the military to hit domestic security concerns, such as with the southern border.

The outlet pointed to lines in the memo that instruct the Pentagon to “seal our borders, repel forms of invasion including unlawful mass migration, narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and other criminal activities, and deport illegal aliens in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security.”

Panama has rejected accusation of Chinese influence, and the Chinese government in February accused the U.S. of “pressuring” Panama and using “coercion” to convince Panama to end an infrastructure development plan with Beijing.

A Hong Kong-based conglomerate last week agreed to sell its stake in key Panama Canal ports to a consortium led by Blackrock Inc., but the Panama Canal Authority reaffirmed that the canal remains under Panamanian authority.

What People Are Saying

Kyle Shideler, director for Homeland Security & Counterterrorism at the Center for Security Policy, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on March 13: “I’m sure there is an entire broom closet in the Pentagon dedicated to storing every conceivable plan for seizing the Panama Canal, which DoD has drawn up and revised yearly since 1977,” adding in a subsequent post, “if 1 out of 10 generals in the Pentagon can’t draw up a plan to seize the Panama Canal on the back of a napkin, from memory, within 5 minutes, they should be fired.”

President Donald Trump told reporters last month: “Panama right now. And we’re talking about the Panama Canal. What they’ve done is terrible. They violated the agreement. They are not allowed to violate the agreement. China is running the Panama Canal. That was not given to China. That was given to Panama, foolishly. But they violated the agreement. And we’re going to take it back or something very powerful is going to happen.”

What Happens Next

The Pentagon has not yet commented on the reported memo, but NBC reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to visit Panama next month and has already reviewed some options that could fulfill the White House request.