Trump's new top maritime official Louis Sola tells CNBC 'all options on the table' to punish Panama and defend U.S. business, trade and national security.

President Donald Trump's suggestion of the U.S. taking control of the Panama Canal has a legal basis partly due to potential treaty violations involving Chinese activities in Panama.

The Tuesday hearing delved into security issues and foreign influence on the foremost maritime channel connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Panama has owned and administered the Panama Canal for nearly three decades. President Trump wants to change that to counter growing Chinese influence in Latin America.

Newly sworn-in President Donald Trump vowed on Monday that the United States would take back the Panama Canal as he delivered an inauguration speech in which he invoked the 19th century expansionist doctrine of "Manifest Destiny" in laying out plans for space exploration.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation held a hearing Tuesday morning focused on the Panama Canal’s impact on U.S. trade and national security. Witnesses include

Panama will be one of the first stops for new Secretary of State Marco Rubio as he heads overseas late next week

President Trump's priorities of immigration enforcement and promoting U.S. interests in the Panama Canal lead the political agenda in Washington.

When the Panama Canal was unveiled by the United States in 1914, the roughly 50-mile-long waterway symbolized American power and technological advancement. But the glow of progress soon faded. Building the canal killed roughly 5,

Republicans hoping to thwart Beijing’s influence in Latin America are urging the Panamanian government to cut ties with Chinese entities.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s insistence that he wants to have the Panama Canal back under U.S. control is feeding nationalist sentiment and worry in Panama, home to the critical trade route and a country familiar with U.