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.

Handing control of the Panama Canal from the U.S. over to the Central American country was one of President Jimmy Carter's most controversial, and most overshadowed, foreign policy achievements.

President-elect Donald Trump over the weekend suggested the US should retake the Panama Canal, an idea that was immediately rejected by the government of Panama, which has controlled the passage for decades.

It's unclear how the issue of ownership of the Panama Canal became a talking point for President-elect Donald Trump this week, but the question has a long political history.

PANAMA CITY (AP) — Teddy Roosevelt once declared the Panama Canal “one of the feats to which the people of this republic will look back with the highest pride.” More than a century later, Donald Trump is threatening to take back the waterway for the same republic.

In recent days the president-elect has called for asserting U.S. control over the Panama Canal and Greenland, showing that his “America First” philosophy has an expansionist dimension.

Panama is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the U.S. handover of the Panama Canal, which president-elect Donald Trump has threatened to take back

Panama on Tuesday marked the 25th anniversary of the United States' handover of its interoceanic canal, a milestone overshadowed by President-elect Donald Trump's threat to demand control be returned to Washington.