Will President Donald Trump really seek to use U.S. military force to retake the Panama Canal as he has threatened? Let’s hope not.
Given the fraught nature of retaking the canal by force or even by economic pressure, it could be justified only by the strongest of national security crises or challenges, and there seem to be none implicating the canal on the horizon.
Trump, of course, has offered his reasons — that Panama is charging too much for U.S. ships to use the canal and that China supposedly has a threatening presence near the canal — but these reasons do not call for war or even intense economic pressure on Panama. Retaking the Panama Canal by military force, as Trump has suggested, is an unrealistic and dangerous proposition that would likely result in significant political, military, and economic fallout. Alternative approaches, like addressing economic grievances or concerns about Chinese influence through diplomacy and cooperation, are more prudent than risking an invasion or imposing unilateral sanctions. […]