China will as always respect Panama's sovereignty over the Canal and recognize the Canal as a permanently neutral international waterway, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Friday, in response to a question about US president-elect Donald Trump's claim that there are Chinese soldiers stationed at the Panama Canal.

The president-elect intends to push back on Beijing’s “growth and strategic footprint” in the Western Hemisphere, said Trump’s pick for Latin America special envoy.

As for the Panama Canal, Mulino denied U.S. vessels are being overcharged to use the waterway and emphasized that China plays no role in the canal. A Hong Kong-based firm manages two ports at the Panama Canal’s entrances, but Panama owns and operates the entire canal.

Treaties ratified by the Senate in 1978 established permanent neutrality, but some Republicans regret that decision.

For dozens of US tourists watching a cargo ship pass through the Panama Canal, Donald Trump's threat to possibly wrest back control of the waterway is nonsensical. None of those interviewed backed US President-elect Trump in his repeated threats that he could seize control of the canal after he returns to the White House next month.