For the 63 years prior to the signing of the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977 and during the 17 years since. the Armed Forces of the United States have stood watch over the canal from a series of military bases located in a 10milewide strip of territory adjacent to the canal. From those bases. they have been in a position to deal effectively not only with immediate threats to the canal itself. but also with other problems that could have eroded hemispheric peace and security if left untended. An excellent example of the two combined came just a few weeks ago when Cuban refugees sent to Panama pending a determination of their status went on a rampage that had to be quelled by United States military personnel. The collapse of communism and the rise of the supertanker notwithstanding. there is good reason to believe that a smoothly operating. properly protected canal will be even more significant to the United States. Panama.
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