Panama promotes itself “as the bridge of the world, heart of the universe” but lately the narrow Central American Isthmus and its namesake canal that joins the Atlantic to the Pacific have become the setting for a bitter clash between the world’s two preeminent economic superpowers.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Panama Canal faces "ongoing threats" as he singled out China during a visit to the key trade route on Tuesday. The big picture: Hegseth's comments following a meeting with Panama President José Raúl Mulino that the U.