Since taking office in January, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly accused the country of relinquishing control of the Panama Canal to China. Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino and Beijing officials deny the claims.

A consortium led by BlackRock has bought two ports on either side of the Panama Canal just a few weeks after President Trump threatened to use force to restore U.S. control over the energy chokepoint.

A consortium led by U.S. private equity firm BlackRock has agreed to purchase the Panama port terminals owned by CK Hutchison of Hong Kong.

A Hong Kong-based company announced Tuesday that it would sell its stake in two ports on the Panama Canal to a U.S.-led consortium, apparently responding to threats from President

The deal puts U.S. firms in control of two ports that President Trump raised as a security concern because of their connection to China.

Panama maintains that it has full control over the canal and that the Hong Kong-based group’s operation of the ports did not amount to Chinese control.

The decision by Hong Kong firm CK Hutchison to sell its Panama ports to a US-led consortium provides the Central American country with a convenient way out of its standoff

U.S. President Donald Trump has hailed a deal led by U.S. firm BlackRock to buy most of the $22.8 billion ports business of Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison, including assets it holds along the Panama Canal.

BlackRock’s move reflects the view that America’s best chance to counter China will hinge on private investment.

Mexico is reviewing its tariff policy over China, and an American investor group has signed a huge deal taking control over key ports near the Panama Canal, indicating that Trump’s America

Trump and his team are right to recognize Panama’s strategic importance, but they are wrong in how they are approaching the issue. During his inaugural address in January, President Trump proclaimed that “China is operating the Panama Canal” and promised that the United States would be “taking it back.