Because of the political uncertainty, the negotiations suffered a major setback. Torrijos, like his predecessors, wished to reach an agreement with the United States.
Bunker focused on ensuring perpetual U. Between the years of and , Bunker and his team were able to conclude a series of draft agreements with the government of Panama that formed the foundation of the eventual Torrijos-Carter Treaties. The presidential elections proved to be a perilous time for the negotiations. The Democratic nominee for president, Jimmy Carter, also seemed to oppose a treaty. The two men were able to convince Carter of the importance of a new treaty, and when he took office, Carter made concluding negotiations with Panama a priority and named Linowitz co-negotiator with Bunker.
Despite the fact that both Carter and Torrijos were eager to conclude a treaty, many obstacles remained. A treaty must be ratified by the Senate with at least a two-thirds majority in order to take effect. Many Senators were opposed to giving Panama control over the Canal Zone.
Thurmond, who was born twelve years before the Canal was built, had a different perspective than the Carter administration.
Thurmond and other conservatives also distrusted Torrijos, whom they considered to be pro-communist. The Carter administration formulated a strategy to conclude debate over the Canal and to gain Senate ratification.
Torrijos hosted U. Senators in Panama, where he stressed that he was neither an enemy of the United States nor a communist. In Congress authorizes a commission to study and survey canal routes. In Theodore Roosevelt is authorized to purchase canal property and rights from the French.
Colombian government refuses offer. Because the United States, France, and the Panamanians are afraid that the agreement will not be approved, Panama with the encouragement and assistance of the U.
The U. Led by Dr. William C. Gorgas, the battle against malaria and yellow fever is won, making possible the completion of the canal.
Before this, the high death toll, among workers slowed work on the canal. The United States chooses to build a lock-type canal because of mountainous conditions instead of the French plan of a sea-level canal.
A sea-level canal is cheaper and easier to build. The canal is completed in and the first vessel, the S. Ancon , makes the transit from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Administrative changes are made in operation of the canal and the Canal Zone. The United States agrees to pay Panamanian workers the same pay that American workers received for the same work. Unrest in Panama over United States presence causes riots in and However, these agreements are not submitted for ratification because of intense U.
Robles' support of the agreement leads to his eventual ouster as president. His successor, Arnulfo Arias renounces the terms of all agreements. On April 18, , the United States Senate ratifies the second of two Panama Canal Treaties which will eventually turn over to Panama the control and operation of the Canal in the year Negotiations were undertaken in the Johnson, Nixon, and Ford administrations to sign a new treaty with Panama, but because of intense opposition from Congress, the ratification of such a treaty is impossible.
By the turn of the century, sole possession of the proposed canal became a military and economic imperative to the United States, which had acquired an overseas empire at the end of the Spanish-American War and sought the ability to move warships and commerce quickly between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
In , the U. In , the Hay-Herran Treaty was signed with Columbia, granting the United States use of the territory in exchange for financial compensation. The U. Senate ratified the treaty, but the Colombian Senate, fearing a loss of sovereignty, refused. In response, President Theodore Roosevelt gave tacit approval to a Panamanian independence movement, which was engineered in large part by Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla and his canal company. On November 3, , a faction of Panamanians issued a declaration of independence from Colombia.
Other Colombian forces were discouraged from marching on Panama by the arrival of the U. The treaty was negotiated by U. Secretary of State John Hay and Bunau-Varilla, who had been given plenipotentiary powers to negotiate on behalf of Panama.
In , American engineers decided on the construction of a lock canal, and the next three years were spent developing construction facilities and eradicating tropical diseases in the area. In , construction proper began. In one of the largest construction projects of all time, U. On August 15, , the Panama Canal was inaugurated with the passage of the U. The basic provisions of the treaty, specifically the right of the United States to control and operate the canal, remained unchanged until the late s.
In the s, Panamanians repeatedly rioted in the Canal Zone over the refusal of U. After U. After years of negotiations for a new Panama Canal treaty, agreement was reached between the United States and Panama in Signed on September 7, , the treaty recognized Panama as the territorial sovereign in the Canal Zone but gave the United States the right to continue operating the canal until December 31,
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