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Events on Wednesday 18 November 1903 1
1903Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty signedUS gains rights to build and control the Panama Canal ZoneSigned on 18 November 1903 between the United States and newly independent Panama, the treaty granted the US a perpetual lease over a strip of land for canal construction. It was negotiated by French engineer Philippe Bunau-Varilla, acting as Panama's envoy despite holding no Panamanian citizenship. The treaty enabled construction of the Panama Canal.