The Panama Canal is a vital waterway in both global and U.S. maritime trade. It handles 6% of worldwide maritime traffic each year, while 40% of U.S. container traffic relies on the Canal annually. This underscores the Canal’s significance as a key route for international transit and trade.

In late January, the U.S. Senate held a hearing to discuss competitiveness, trade, and security concerns surrounding the Panama Canal. This follows remarks from President Trump, who has expressed support for returning the Canal to U.S. control, per Supply Chain Dive. The shift of control occurred 22 years ago in 1999 when former President Jimmy Carter signed treaties that phased out U.S. authority, make Panama the sole operator.

Additionally, the Canal has faced significant drought conditions in past years. A short while ago the Panama Canal Authority put out a potential solution to mitigate these challenges: a land bridge (link: https://www.interlogusa.com/answers/blog/land-bridge-proposal-panama-canals-bold-plan-to-drought-restrictions/ ). Their plan would entail constructing a bridge that would allow containers to be transported across Panama by land. However, this is not a short-term solution, this project would take significant time and money.