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Panamanian President José Mulino said privately this week that if President-elect Donald Trump continues to threaten his country, he may take the matter to the United Nations Security Council, according to former Panamanian President Ernesto Balladares.
But Mulino said he was waiting until Trump takes office to assess whether the next US president will push the issue, according to Balladare.
"He said he will take more action after January 20 ... if President-elect Trump insists on this issue," Balladares said in an interview at his office.
Balladares said Mulino made the comments during a meeting Wednesday at Panama's presidential palace, where Latin American leaders met with Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González. According to Balladare, Mulino did not specify any other action he might take.
" Like everyone else in this country, he's surprised," Balladares said of his successor's response to Trump's rhetoric.
Wednesday's remarks came a day after Trump refused to rule out the use of military force to retake the Panama Canal, which the US ceded to Panama a quarter of a century ago.
Neither the Trump transition nor a spokeswoman for Mulino, Astrid Salazar, immediately responded to requests for comment.
In recent weeks, Trump has claimed, without any apparent basis, that Chinese soldiers control the canal, which is operated by an independent Panama Canal Authority. He has also complained about transit fees paid by US ships and threatened to take back control of the waterway.
Mulino publicly backed down last month, saying : "As president, I want to state clearly that every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent area belongs to Panama and will remain so."
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