The U.S. acquired the rights to build and operate the canal in the early 20th century, but at the time, Panama was in the process of seceding from Colombia, whose senate was refusing to ratify a treaty that would allow the canal to be built, according to the State Department's Office of the Historian .

The president of Panama, José Raúl Mulino, is not happy with Donald Trump’s accusation that Chinese troops are stationed in the Panama Canal, calling the claim “nonsense.”