The Panamanian leader says he was “incredibly surprised” by the statement, as President Trump threatens a U.S. takeover of the strategic waterway.

Navy use of the canal is infrequent, with about 40 vessels transiting annually, excluding the service’s aircraft carriers, which are too large. Allowing free access would reportedly save the U.S. about $13 million each year, according to the WSJ report.

Panama's president says the State Department's claim of an agreement granting U.S. warships free canal passage was "based on a falsity. And that's intolerable."

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday denied the U.S. State Department’s claim that his country had agreed to allow U.S. government vessels to transit the Panama Canal for free, an assertion that has upended the two countries’ talks on the waterway.

Panama denied a claim made by the State Department on Wednesday that the Central American nation had agreed to no longer charge fees for US government ships to transit the country’s famous canal.

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday rejected U.S. claims that American warships and boats can transit the Panama Canal without paying a standard fee. In a weekly news conference,

President Donald Trump says China is running the Panama Canal and “we’re gonna take it back, or something very powerful’s going to happen.” Panama then reportedly made the offer to allow U.S.

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter{beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security   The Big Story Panama rejects US claim ships

President José Raúl Mulino on Thursday denied a claim by the Trump administration that this Central American country had agreed to eliminate tolls for U.S. government ships using the Panama Canal, in an apparent setback to U.