Dec 30, 2024 - Business

Panama's president reflects on Jimmy Carter's "crucial" canal legacy

Rebecca Falconer

Panama's President Jose Raul Mulino speaks during his weekly press conference at the presidential palace in Panama City on December 26, 2024. — Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino at the presidential palace in Panama City on Thursday. Photo: Arnulfo Franco/AFP via Getty Images

Panama's President José Raúl Mulino remembered former President Jimmy Carter, who died on Sunday at age 100, for his "crucial" role in ensuring the Panama Canal was returned to Panamanian control.

The big picture: Carter signed treaties with Panama's leader in 1977 for the U.S. to gradually cede control of one of the world's most significant pieces of infrastructure — a move that came into effect on Dec. 31, 1999.

President-elect Trump has threatened to retake ownership and control of the canal if Panamanian authorities don't lower fees for U.S. ships.

What they're saying: "His time in the White House marked complex times, which were crucial for Panama in order to negotiate and agree on" the treaties that "achieved the transfer of the Canal to Panamanian hands and the full sovereignty of our country," Mulino said on X, offering his condolences to Carter's family and the U.S. government.

"May his soul rest in peace."

Go deeper: Trump demands return of Panama Canal if rates aren't cut

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Panama's president reflects on Jimmy Carter's "crucial" canal legacy

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