In early April, Defense News reported that the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was going to Panama to speak to its leadership and discuss the situation with the Panama Canal concerning China,

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to Panama next week, the second senior U.S. official to visit the country in as many months, as President Donald Trump says America is “reclaiming” the country’s eponymous canal.” 

US aggression in Panama is following a blueprint to reclaim its “backyard” since China is wining influence and trade among Latin American nations.  This is an insult to Panama, in fact, it’s an imperialist move that signifies that the Trump regime does not respect the sovereignty of the Panamanian people. This brings back the horrible memories of the US invasion of Panama on December 20, 1989 that resulted in hundreds, some estimates say, thousands of people dead.

“While there, Hegseth will meet with the country’s president, Jose Raul Mulino, and attend a meeting of regional chiefs of defense. He will also visit military sites and the Panama Canal itself.” 

This is alarming not only to Panama, but to other Latin American nations on Washington’s list for regime change including Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. 

The report said that

“In a statement Friday, Pentagon Press Secretary Sean Parnell wrote the meetings “will drive ongoing efforts to strengthen our partnerships with Panama and other Central American nations toward our shared vision for a peaceful and secure Western Hemisphere.”

The mainstream media including Trump’s cheerleaders, Fox news and Newsmax, has been rather silent about these developments, according to Defense News,

“The U.S. has a small military presence in Panama, though the Pentagon has reportedly been planning options to increase that number, in line with the president’s goal to take control of the canal. America is currently participating in a military exercise inside the country“ continued, “To further enhance our national security, my administration will be reclaiming the Panama Canal, and we’ve already started doing it,” Trump said in a March address to Congress.” 

Panama’s President Jose Raul Mulino originally rejected Trump’s claims, but it seems that somehow he was intimidated,

“In a post on the social app X after Trump’s speech, Mulino said ownership of the canal wasn’t being transferred and that he and Rubio didn’t discuss the topic” Mulino said, “I reject, on behalf of Panama and all Panamanians, this new affront to the truth and to our dignity as a nation.”

The US Department of Defense highlighted what Hegseth had said at the press conference,

“The era of capitulating to coercion by the communist Chinese is over,” he continued, “[China’s] growing and adversarial control of strategic land and critical infrastructure in this hemisphere cannot and will not stand.”

Hegseth had announced the “expanded partnership” with Panamanian Public Security Minister Frank Abrego. Hegseth said that

“The Panama Canal is key terrain that must be secured by Panama, with America, and not China.”

In other words, the US is now in control of the Panama Canal because there was never a “partnership.” The US treats Panama as a puppet state under the banner of democracy. 

Now it seems that President Mulino has reversed his stance.  Le Monde ‘Panama deal allows US to deploy troops to canal, but no permanent bases’ reported that US troops would be occupying, not building new bases:

US troops will be able to deploy a string of bases along the Panama Canal under a joint deal seen by AFP on Thursday, April 10, a major concession to President Donald Trump as he seeks to reestablish influence over the vital waterway. The agreement, signed by top security officials from both countries, allows US military personnel to deploy to Panama-controlled facilities for training, exercises and “other activities”

“Other activities” means that the CIA will be using those occupied bases in Panama to conduct regime change operations in Latin America.  Mulino did warn that Trump’s idea to have US-owned bases in Panama would ignite mass protests:

Mulino was on Thursday in Peru, where he revealed that the United States had asked to have its own bases. Mulino said he had told visiting Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth that US bases, allowed under an earlier draft, would be “unacceptable.” He warned Hegseth: “Do you want to create a mess, what we’ve put in place here would set the country on fire”

In a Memorandum of Understanding, Hegseth and Abrego supposedly acknowledged that Panama “won” concessions, but who in their right mind would trust the US President and his neocon regime?

In the watered-down “Memorandum of Understanding,” signed by Hegseth and Panama’s security chief Frank Abrego on Wednesday, Panama won its own concessions. The United States recognized Panama’s sovereignty – not a given following Trump’s refusal to rule out an invasion – and Panama will retain control over any installations. Panama will also have to agree to any deployments. But given Trump’s willingness to rip up or rewrite trade deals, treaties and agreements, that might offer little succor to worried Panamanians

In an important note, Le Monde mentioned how Trump allowed BlackRock, a deep state corporate entity to buy two ports for $19 billion which angered Beijing:

The ports’ parent company CK Hutchison announced last month a deal to offload 43 ports in 23 countries – including its two on the Panama Canal – to a consortium led by US asset manager BlackRock for $19 billion in cash. A furious Beijing has since announced an antitrust review of the deal

However, Panama’s opposition describes what is happening as a ‘Camouflaged Invasion’ as reported by The Guardian:   

Panamanian opposition politicians have accused the US of launching a “camouflaged invasion” of the country, amid simmering discontent over the government’s handling of the diplomatic crisis.

After a three-day visit by the US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump appeared to confirm that US military personnel had been deployed to the Central American country on Thursday, telling reporters: “We’ve moved a lot of troops to Panama”

Washington is clearly trying to reoccupy Panama under the radar which will not sit well with most Panamanians, “Hegseth said that the US would increase its military presence at three former US bases in the country to “secure the Panama canal from Chinese influence.” 

Since 1999, the US military exited Panama under the 1977 Torrijos-Carter Treaty that handed over the canal to Panamanian authorities, “Under the canal’s neutrality treaty, no foreign power can “maintain military forces, defense sites and military installations within its national territory”, and the US comments have prompted outrage in Panama.”

Ricardo Lombana, the leader of the opposition Other Way Movement said that “This is a camouflaged invasion” and that its “an invasion without firing a shot, but with a cudgel and threats.” 

This is the case: the US has invaded Panama without media attention.  The Trump regime is following in the footsteps of the former US President, William McKinley the imperialist who led the effort to get the US into a war with Spain in what is known as the Spanish–American War.  McKinley expanded US territories with the annexation of Hawaii and led to the forced colonization of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Philippines and American Samoa.

The Panamanian people will reject this imperialist move by the Trump Whitehouse.  I also agree with Panama’s President, Jose Raul Mulino, in what he originally said about the US having their own bases would “set the country on fire.”  But having US military personal in already existing military bases can also set Panama on fire.  Either way, it’s a bad situation for Panama, protests are guaranteed, and the world is watching closely.     

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Timothy Alexander Guzman writes on his own blog site, Silent Crow News, where this article was originally published. He is a regular contributor to Global Research. 

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