The Panama Canal Authority administrator, Ricaurte Vásquez Morales, refuted President-elect Donald Trump’s claim that China controls the Panama Canal. He stated on Wednesday that allegations of Chinese control are baseless and that China has no operational involvement.

Vásquez Morales emphasized the importance of adhering to established rules, asserting that any preferential treatment, including for China or the U.S., would violate neutrality treaties and international law, resulting in chaos.

The 1970s Torrijos-Carter Treaties granted the U.S. the right to use military force to protect the canal’s neutrality, a crucial provision during the Cold War’s threat of Soviet influence. The treaties also stipulated the transfer of canal control to Panama on December 31, 1999.

When questioned at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday about potential U.S. coercion to control the Panama Canal and Greenland, Trump declined to offer assurances. He stated the canal’s importance to U.S. economic security, claiming it was built for the U.S. military, and asserting that China is operating it despite the transfer to Panama. He considered this transfer an abuse of a gift and a significant mistake.

While former President Carter lay in state, Trump criticized the canal handover, suggesting it contributed to Carter’s electoral defeat, even more so than the Iran hostage crisis. He described it as an inappropriate topic but a detrimental part of Carter’s legacy, while acknowledging Carter as a good man.

This denial of Chinese influence is not unprecedented. Last month, Trump’s TRUTH Social post alleging Chinese soldiers’ illegal operation of the canal was dismissed by Vásquez Morales as “nonsense” at a press conference, where he confirmed the canal’s Panamanian ownership and the impossibility of negotiations around this fact.

Trump’s concerns reflect broader U.S. anxieties regarding China’s expanding investments in global shipping ports. In March testimony before the House Armed Services Committee, General Laura J. Richardson of U.S. Southern Command highlighted China’s strategic investments in critical infrastructure, including deep-water ports, and their potential for military access. She noted China’s bidding on Panama Canal-related projects and highlighted the canal’s role as a global strategic chokepoint, carrying 5% of global commerce.

The New York Times reported that two seaports flanking the Panama Canal have been managed for decades by Hutchison Ports PPC, a Hong Kong-based company, noting China’s influence on Hong Kong companies. Approximately 40% of U.S. container traffic transits the Panama Canal.