Trump’s Panama Canal fight puts Asian ports on notice

At first glance, US President Donald Trump’s crusade against China’s non-military maritime influence might seem like a northern hemisphere headache – a problem far removed from Asia’s concerns.

In his first four weeks in office, Mr Trump fixated on

the national security threat posed by the Panama Canal

– the waterway on the other side of the world through which 40 per cent of all American goods pass. He threatened to “take back” the canal from Panama, accusing

Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison

, the operator of two critical ports at either end of the canal, of price-gouging American vessels and, crucially, of being under Beijing’s control.