Trump Promises To Be a 'Peacemaker,' Threatens Panama

In his inauguration address on Monday afternoon, President Donald Trump said his “proudest legacy” would be “that of a peacemaker.”

Moments later, Trump threatened to seize a portion of the sovereign territory of another country—specifically, the Panama Canal, a crucial link for global trade.

It’s a useful reminder of what America will be getting for the next four years: a president who holds a chaotic mix of often contradictory ideas, and one who sees everything as being up for negotiation. Do you want a president who will keep America out of pointless foreign conflicts? Trump promises to be that guy. Do you want a president who projects American power around the world and demands fealty from the leaders of lesser nations? He can be that guy too. Just don’t try to reconcile the two visions.

In his role as a peacemaker, Trump said the military’s success should be measured “not only by the battles we win, but…perhaps most importantly, the wars we never get into.” That skepticism of America’s ability to impose its will at the point of the 101st Airborne Division has been a vital part of Trump’s political career, which began with his (welcome and necessary) bashing of Bush-era Republicans who led the country into the disastrous wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

And then, moments later, Trump was asserting America’s right to take whatever it wants, even if other countries might disagree: “We gave it to Panama, and we’re taking it back,” Trump said, referring to the canal.

Indeed, the United States did give the canal to Panama. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed a treaty with Panamanian Chief of Government Omar Torrijos that relinquished American control over the Panama Canal Zone, which included not just the canal itself but a five-mile swath of land on either side of the channel. That territory had been granted to the United States by another treaty between the two countries in 1903.

Trump has complained about that 1977 deal for years, but the most recent motivation has to do with a third country: China.

“China is operating the Panama Canal, and we didn’t give it to China,” he said in the inauguration address.

As The Wall Street Journal explains, that claim is rooted in the build-up of “Chinese infrastructure” in and around the canal. A Hong Kong-based company runs ports at either end of the canal, and China has subsidized the building of a new cruise ship terminal, a new bridge, and other projects in and around the canal in recent years.

Still, as the Journal notes, both Panamanian and American officials say those projects aren’t a security concern and don’t violate the canal’s neutrality.

Most importantly, Panama President José Raúl Mulino says he’s not interested in making a deal. “The canal is and will continue to be Panamanian,” he said last month. Mulino spoke in stronger terms on Monday, saying in a statement that he “must fully reject” Trump’s statements in the inaugural address.

“Dialogue remains the ideal approach to address these issues without compromising our rights, full sovereignty, or ownership of our Canal,” Mulino added.

Trump is right that the U.S. is stronger when it isn’t going abroad in search of monsters to destroy. But he’s wrong to be threatening an ally and preparing to tear up a treaty over a nonexistent threat.

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