Beijing’s efforts to expand its reach in the country have hit several obstacles, in part because of American pressure.

The administrator of the Panama Canal said Friday that the vital waterway will remain in Panamanian hands and open to commerce from all countries, rejecting claims by President-elect Donald Trump that the United States should take it over.

The Panamanian comptroller's office that oversees public entities announced “an exhaustive audit" at the Panama Ports Company.

Panama has reportedly submitted a formal letter to the U.N. rejecting Trump's statement about reclaiming the canal. The country's President José Raúl Mulino said in the letter, dated January 20, that the canal "is and will continue to be Panama's," the New York Times reported.

China has fired back at President Donald Trump, dismissing his claim that Beijing has seized control of the Panama Canal as baseless and provocative. Newsweek reached out by email to a Trump representative and to Hutchison Ports, a Hong Kong–based port operator that controls ports near the canal, for comment.

Panama has complained to the United Nations over President Donald Trump's "worrying" threat to seize the Panama Canal.

Panama has complained to the United Nations over US President Donald Trump's "worrying" threat to seize the Panama Canal, even as it launched

Russia warned President Trump on Tuesday against seizing the Panama Canal, after he reiterated his intent to take control of the strategic waterway in his second inaugural address Monday.

Donald Trump's aggressive stance on the Panama Canal risks setting a dangerous precedent. It could offer China a blueprint to justify its territorial ambitions. Critics say Trump's stance could embolden Beijing's expansionism in Taiwan and the South China Sea,

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We're taking it back.' Trump inauguration speech claim that the U.S. will regain control of the Panama Canal spurs immediate reaction in Panama.