Egypt will not accept this cheap blackmail,” said a member of Egypt’s parliament in response to Trump's social media post.

The Panamanian president, Jose Raul Mulino, said that toll fees were regulated by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP), an autonomous governing body that oversees the trade route.

US President Donald Trump has expanded his demands on global shipping waterways to Egypt’s Suez Canal. Trump said over the weekend that US commercial and naval ships should be given free passage through both the Panama and Suez canals.