The president of the United States would be authorized to enter into negotiations for the reacquisition of the Panama Canal from the Republic of Panama under legislation led by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD).
“President Trump is right to consider repurchasing the Panama Canal,” Rep. Johnson said. “China’s interest in and presence around the canal is a cause for concern. America must project strength abroad — owning and operating the Panama Canal might be an important step towards a stronger America and a more secure globe.”
The congressman on Jan. 9 sponsored the Panama Canal Repurchase Act of 2025, H.R. 283, with 16 Republican original cosponsors, citing data from the U.S. Department of State showing that the Panama Canal is of strategic importance to the United States with roughly 72 percent of all vessel transits through the canal coming from or destined to a U.S. port.
Without access to the Panama Canal, ocean shippers would have to travel 8,000 additional miles around South America. More than 10,000 ships use the Panama Canal each year, generating billions of dollars of tolls which also would economically benefit America, according to information provided by Rep. Johnson’s staff.
At the same time, China’s growing influence in the Panama Canal region is cause for concern, the information says, noting that in 2018, Panama was the first country in Latin America to join the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Belt and Road Initiative. Since then, investments from PRC firms in canal infrastructure have increased, while PRC companies have managing rights for the two ports on either side of the canal.
H.R. 283 has been referred for consideration to the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee