Reply to Hey is it good diplomacy to demand the Panama Canal back?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Trump is bringing visibility to a serious issue. This is how he does it. If you don't realize that by now, you haven't been paying attention.[/quote]

What is the serious issue? Transit fees and ship quotas caused by drought and low water levels?[/quote]

This isn't some petty bete noire of Trump’s. The Panama Canal is the transport mechanism for huge amounts of American goods, and US companies and consumers stand to gain a lot from evening the playing field. You really haven't provided an answer to any of this beyond "nuh uh" and "your dumb" and lots of cuss words. But these are indeed serious issues that the US has been tracking for quite some time. [/quote]

The playing field isn't uneven. The U.S. isn't being treated unfairly. Trump may regret that the U.S. turned the canal over to Panama but he has no actual recourse. [/quote]

We have quite a bit of recourse at this stage. But if we wait, while China gets more entrenched and [b]sets up military bases[/b], we will lose the ability to set the situation back to its prior status. The time to strike is now, while the situation between Panama and China is still nascent and fragile.  Not when China has gained strength and Panama has more to lose by backing off of their relationship. [/quote]

Is there any actual evidence that this is occurring?[/quote]

Reread what I wrote. I said if we wait, they will become entrenched and set up military bases.

Yes, there are reports that China has discussed building military bases with various latin american governments.

This article gives a good overview of what I mean by China's attempts to become entrenched:  https://www.southcom.mil/MEDIA/NEWS-ARTICLES/Article/3553735/the-expanding-leverage-of-the-peoples-republic-of-china-in-latin-america-implic/[/quote]

Do you think threatening the sovereignty of an ally nation with a pro-US government would make it more or less likely that they will turn towards China?[/quote]

And I acknowledge that I did not directly answer your question. So in follow up- it will make them more likely to turn away from China and toward us.

The last time we invaded Panama and arrested it's leadership, it really improved relationships. But. Here we are again, so we need to take action again.

I would not characterize Panama as an ally as you repeatedly have. They are a client state.[/quote]

1.  Yes, the overthrow of the Noriega dictatorship did, over time bring the US and Panama closer together as Panama embraced democracy.

2. As a democracy we do not have client states.  That is something only authoritatian regimes have. We have partners and allies.  Panama and Colombia are our two strategic allies in the region.

3.  It is interesting to note when Panama de-recognized Taiwan and when they started their dalliance with China.  2017-2018.  Guess what was happening with US foreign policy at that time.

4.  Since then, despite not having an Ambassador for four years due to GOP Senate holds, much has changed.  Including the Government of Panama.

5.  We have seen what happens when we practice D-bag Diplomacy.  It drives friends towards our rivals and harms our strategic interests.

6. The increase in transit fees is due to known environmental factors and is applied across the board.  That is what he tweeted about not China.  If it was about China then it would have been one of the worst ways to go about trying to influence the situation.[/quote]

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