US President-elect Donald Trump threatened on Sunday to restore US control of the Panama Canal, accusing Panama of charging exorbitant prices to use the Central American passage – comments that drew sharp condemnation from Panamanian President José Raúl Mulin.

Speaking to a crowd of supporters in Arizona on Sunday, Trump also said he would not let the canal fall into the “wrong hands,” warning of potential Chinese influence over the passage.

China does not control or operate the canal, but a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings has long operated two ports located at the canal’s Caribbean and Pacific entrances.

The president-elect’s comments came hours after he made a similar threat to Panama in a post on Truth Social on Saturday night.

“Has anyone ever heard of the Panama Canal?” Trump said Sunday at AmericaFest, an annual event organized by Turning Point, a coalition of conservative groups. “Because they cheat us in the Panama Canal like they cheat us everywhere else.”

Trump’s comments were an extremely rare example of a US leader saying he could force a sovereign country to hand over territory.

It also underscores the expected turn in American diplomacy under Trump, who has historically not shied away from threatening allies and using bellicose rhetoric in relations with colleagues.

“The fees charged by Panama are ridiculous, very unfair,” Trump said.

“It was given to Panama and the people of Panama, but there are stipulations. You have to treat us fairly, and they didn’t treat us fairly.

“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this generous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in its entirety, quickly and without question.”

In a taped message released Sunday afternoon, Panamanian leader Mulino said Panama’s independence is non-negotiable and China has no influence over the management of the canal. He also defended the passage rates charged by Panama, saying they were not set “on a whim.”

“Every square meter of the Panama Canal and the surrounding area belongs to Panama and will continue to belong (to Panama),” Mulino said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Several other Panamanian politicians, including members of the opposition, also took to social media to criticize Trump’s remarks.

The United States largely built the canal and for decades governed the territory surrounding the passage. But the US and Panama signed a pair of agreements in 1977 that paved the way for the return of the canal to full Panamanian control. The US surrendered control of the passage in 1999 after a period of joint administration.

The waterway, which allows the passage of up to 14,000 ships a year, accounts for 2.5 percent of global maritime trade and is critical for U.S. imports of automobiles and commercial goods by container ships from Asia, and for U.S. exports of commodities, including liquefied natural gas.

It is not clear how Trump would try to regain control of the canal, and under international law he would have no recourse if he decided to play for passage.

This is not the first time that Trump openly thinks about territorial expansion.

In recent weeks, he has repeatedly considered turning Canada into an American state, although it is unclear how serious he is about it.

During his first term, Trump expressed interest in buying Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark. The Danish authorities publicly rejected him before they could even talk.