U.S. and Panama Deepen Alliance to Defend Vital Canal

In a powerful display of bilateral cooperation, the United States and Panama have concluded PANAMAX-Alpha 2025, a multi-phase joint military exercise designed to strengthen the defense of one of the world’s most critical maritime arteries. The drills, which culminated in early August, simulated a series of complex threats to the Panama Canal’s security and sovereignty. Coordinated by U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), the exercise underscores a renewed focus on the canal’s strategic importance under the Trump administration and highlights growing concerns over regional stability and foreign influence.

A Multi-Layered Strategy for Defense

The 2025 exercises were structured in three distinct phases, creating a comprehensive framework for readiness. The operation began in late March with Phase 0, a humanitarian mission focused on delivering medical aid, food, and infrastructure support to remote Panamanian communities in Guna Yala and Colón. This initial phase emphasized disaster preparedness and civil-military engagement.

By mid-July, Phase I shifted to tactical military training, with U.S. and Panamanian forces conducting joint air mobility, maritime security, and fast-rope insertion drills at key locations like Panama Pacifico and Cristóbal Colón. The final and most intensive stage, Phase II, took place in early August at Panama’s Cerro Tigre training range. This phase tested the combined forces’ ability to execute a rapid and integrated response to a simulated major attack, involving mounted patrols, close-quarters combat, and tactics to counter illicit drug trafficking.

Geopolitical Undercurrents and a High-Stakes Waterway

The Panama Canal is a linchpin of global commerce, accounting for roughly 6% of worldwide trade and serving as a crucial transit point for military and commercial vessels. Its security has been elevated to a top-tier national security priority for the United States under President Donald Trump, who has been vocal about countering perceived threats to American interests in the region. The administration has pointed specifically to China’s expanding economic footprint in Panama, including investments in port infrastructure, as a potential strategic vulnerability. President Trump has publicly stated that China is “operating the Panama Canal” and has pledged to “take it back” if necessary, reflecting deep-seated concerns in Washington that Beijing’s influence could compromise the canal’s neutrality or operational integrity.

Defense planners are focused on a spectrum of modern threats, from state-sponsored cyber-attacks targeting the canal’s sophisticated control systems to the exploitation of its transit routes by transnational criminal organizations.

Elite Forces and Future-Focused Readiness

Phase II of PANAMAX-Alpha 2025 brought together a host of specialized U.S. military units, including Naval Special Warfare Group ELEVEN, an Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, the 7th Special Forces Group, and the Coast Guard’s Maritime Security Response Team EAST. Their integration with Panamanian Security Forces was central to the exercise’s goal of countering complex, multi-domain threats.

U.S. military leaders praised the outcome of the joint operation. U.S. Army Lt. Col. Innis E. Bryant, a SOUTHCOM exercise chief, noted the “growing professionalism” and “leadership ownership” demonstrated by the Panamanian forces. Echoing this sentiment, SOUTHCOM Commander U.S. Navy Adm. Alvin Holsey stressed that defending the canal is a “strategic necessity” to deter illicit trafficking, cyber warfare, and regional destabilization efforts. First launched in 2003, the PANAMAX exercise series and its bilateral component, PANAMAX-Alpha, continue to evolve, reinforcing an enduring security alliance built on shared interests in maintaining a secure and freely accessible global commons.