“Every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent areas belongs to Panama and will remain owned by Panama,” Mulino said in a video posted on X.
Mullino’s public comments, while never mentioning Trump by name, came a day after the president-elect complained about the canal on his Truth social platform.
“Our navy and commerce have been treated very unfairly and unjustly. The fees charged by Panama are ridiculous,” he said.
Trump also complained about China’s growing influence around the canal, a worrying trend for American interests because American businesses depend on the channel to move goods between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
“It was just for the management of Panama, not China or anybody else,” Trump said. “We will and never will let it fall into the wrong hands!”
The Panama Canal, which was completed by the United States in 1914, was returned to the Central American country under a 1977 agreement signed by Democratic President Jimmy Carter.
Panama took full control in 1999.
Trump said that if Panama failed to ensure the “safe, efficient and reliable operation” of the canal, “then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us completely and without question.”
Mulino denied Trump’s claims in his video message, though he also expressed hope for a “good and respectful relationship” with the incoming administration.
“The canal has no direct or indirect control by China, the European Union, the United States or any other power,” Mulino said. “As a Panamanian, I reject any expression that misrepresents this reality.”
Later Sunday, Trump responded to Mullino’s firing, writing on Truth Social: “We’ll see about it!”