PANAMA CITY – Panama reaffirmed on Wednesday that it alone controls the Panama Canal, rejecting remarks by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth that Washington and Panama jointly control the interoceanic waterway.

"No other country controls the canal. Panama alone controls it," Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha told local media on the sidelines of an international conference.

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The foreign minister stressed that sovereignty over the canal belongs exclusively to Panama and that the waterway is operated and administered by the Panama Canal Authority.

Martinez-Acha said Panama maintains maritime security cooperation with several countries, including the United States, Britain, South Korea, Japan, Colombia and Spain, but emphasized that such cooperation does not imply any transfer of sovereignty or control over the canal.

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Hegseth claimed Tuesday that the United States and Panama control the canal.

Panamanian lawmaker Patsy Lee also rejected the claim, saying it did not reflect the reality of the canal's administration.

"To say that the United States controls the canal alongside Panama is false. Panama alone operates the canal, and our Constitution assigns that responsibility to the Panama Canal Authority," Lee told Xinhua.

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She stressed that Panama would continue to administer the neutral canal open to vessels from all nations on equal terms, in accordance with relevant treaties.

Panama assumed full control of the canal on Dec 31, 1999, under the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty signed by the United States and Panama.