The Panama Canal has a complicated history, although we found no evidence of it being under China's control as Trump also claimed.

Gordon Chang, expert on U.S.-China relations, joined “Forbes Newsroom” to talk about Trump’s recent comments calling on the U.S. to reclaim control of the Panama Canal.

The canal was turned over to Panama on Dec. 31, 1999. For Carter, the deal signified a new beginning of mutual respect and cooperation between the U.S. and Latin America, as he said in his speech in 1978. It also showed “the last remnant of alleged American colonialism is being removed” during a time when the world moved away from imperialism.

X account The Halfway Post claimed the country of Panama was banning the entire Trump family from entering its borders for 100 years. The post in question was reshared thousands of times. Some X users seemed to interpret the rumor as a factual recounting of real-life events,

President-elect Donald Trump threatened recently to retake the Panama Canal because of what he called "exorbitant" rates and China's influence. What threats could China pose to the U.S. if it were able to exert strategic control over the canal?

President-elect Donald Trump recently proposed reclaiming the Panama Canal, which has quickly sparked global debate. The canal was constructed by the U.S. in 1914, and later trans