The U.S. acquired the rights to build and operate the canal in the early 20th century, but at the time, Panama was in the process of seceding from Colombia, whose senate was refusing to ratify a treaty that would allow the canal to be built, according to the State Department's Office of the Historian .

President-elect Donald Trump has once again repeated his desires for U.S. territorial expansion. In a message delivered on Christmas Day, Trump took aim at the Panama Canal and Greenland, while also addressing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau directly.