Panama’s president shot down President-elect Donald Trump’s threat on Sunday that the US would call on the Central American country to cede control of the Panama Canal if it continued to charge “exorbitant” fees to use the critical shipping channel.

Panama President Jose Raul Mulino rallied support from former presidents in defense of the country’s canal following threats from Donald Trump to reimpose US control over the waterway.

The Panama Canal, which was completed by the United States in 1914, was returned to the Central American country under a 1977 deal signed by Democratic president Jimmy Carter.