USA HISTORY

AMERICAN IMPERIALISM(1890 1919)

AMERICAN IMPERIALISM

[SOURCES]
The US gained construction rights for the Panama Canal by

(A) attacking Panama with US warships

(B) annexing Panama to the US

(C) signing an agreement with the Colombian Senate

(D) ** encouraging a local uprising against the Colombian government

EXPLANATIONS BELOW

Concept note-1: -The United States supported the independence of Panama from Colombia to gain approval to build the Panama Canal. The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty of Panama gave the United States the right to build the canal and manage the land beside it, known as the Panama Canal Zone, with little benefit for Panama.

Concept note-2: -In 1903, the United States negotiated a treaty with Colombia that granted the United States the right to construct and operate a canal for 100 years within a zone six-miles wide across Panama.

Concept note-3: -The Panama Canal was built to lower the distance, cost, and time it took for ships to carry cargo between the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans. Before the canal, ships would have to go around the entire continent of South America.

Concept note-4: -In 1903, Panama declared its independence from Colombia in a U.S.-backed revolution and the U.S. and Panama signed the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty, in which the U.S. agreed to pay Panama $10 million for a perpetual lease on land for the canal, plus $250, 000 annually in rent.

Concept note-5: -Answer and Explanation: The US supported the Panamanian rebellion against Columbia in order to get a favorable deal to build the Panama Canal.