Potential plans range from partnering more closely with Panamanian security forces to a less likely option of U.S. troops seizing the canal by force, U.S. officials told NBC News.

Now, reports suggest that President Trump is considering military action to take control of the canal once again. According to NBC, the Trump administration has asked U.S. troops

American access to the Panama Canal, one of several new directives outlined in what amounts to a major overhaul of US strategic priorities, according to a new memo that was sent to senior leaders and reviewed by CNN.

The White House has asked the United States military to draw up plans for how it might seize the Panama Canal “by force,” a bombshell report revealed Thursday. The alleged directive comes a week after President Donald Trump told lawmakers in his joint address to Congress he would be “reclaiming” the vital waterway to “further enhance our national security.

The White House has instructed the U.S. military to draft options for increasing the American troop presence in Panama