The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee convened Tuesday to discuss the American-Chinese rivalry at the Panama Canal, one of President Donald Trump’s major talking points since his reelection in November.
Trump has repeatedly called for the United States to take back control of the canal—while not ruling out using military force to do so—and has warned of heavy Chinese activity in the region.
Sen. Ted Cruz opened the hearing by warning of increasing Chinese control of the canal—in his view, a violation of the United States’ 1977 agreement with Panama that returned control of the canal to the Central American nation at the end of 1999, as well as an economic and national security risk.
“Chinese companies are building a bridge across the canal—at a slow pace so as to take nearly a decade—and control container ports at either end. The…
