This is John Batchel, a conversation with my colleague Joseph Umeyer, about the Panama Canal.

The initiative comes from President-elect Trump to look at the canal as a national security issue,

not only about the economics, but national security.

Joseph takes up that argument very carefully now and explocates what about the Panama Canal is threatened

and by whom and what does it mean about the U.S. responsibility. Here's Joseph Umair, the national

security story about the Panama Canal, in addition to all the colorful history, more of this tonight.

But I think it's important to understand that this is a discussion that's not just about,

you know, the economics of it. And there was things that President Trump mentioned about the

fees and things and the, you know, overcharging. But it's really a national security conversation.

And as you mentioned, China was doing this throughout the hemisphere, but it probably doesn't make

as big of an impact as it does, they're doing on the canal, which is very kind of quiet stealth

encroachment of being able to take infrastructure, embed themselves into specific industries,

little by little take over critical areas of multiple

countries in the Western Hemisphere. So with Panama, they did this really right before the

turnover of the canal. As you mentioned, the Canal Treaty was signed in 79. The turnover happened in

99. Two years prior to that, in, China immediately, understanding the importance of this,

began to bid for concessions on operating two of the ports of the canal, and they have

been operating it ever since.

They had a 20-year concession that they just renewed two years ago for another 20 years,

so they have a long time for the concessions on the canal.

The companies from China that operate these canal are companies that are intrinsically tied

to China's military, the PLA, the People's Liberation Army.

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