Hegseth, who was in Panama on Tuesday to meet with its government officials, spoke from a new U.S.-financed pier at the Vasco Nuñez de Balboa Naval Base on the canal.
He said Beijing would not be allowed to "weaponize" the waterway via a commercial presence.
"The United States of America will not allow communist China or any other country to threaten the canal's operation or integrity," he said.
He noted that the U.S. and Panama strengthened their defense and security cooperation in recent weeks and together "will take back the Panama Canal from China's influence."
"China did not build this canal. China does not operate this canal and China will not weaponize this canal," Hegseth said from the pier. "Together, with Panama in the lead, we will keep the canal secure and available for all nations."
The message had a more conciliatory tone compared with that of his boss, President Trump, who has vowed to take back the Panama Canal from Panama. Trump has claimed that China effectively controls the trade route via two major ports on either end of the shipping lane.
Panama has rejected these assertions, pointing to its withdrawal earlier this year of its Belt and Road Initiative agreements with Beijing, made in 2017.
Trump has not ruled out the use of military force in taking over the canal, and last month NBC News reported that the White House had directed the Pentagon "to draw up options to increase the American troop presence in Panama."
The Pentagon chief notably did not assert that China controls the canal or that the U.S. should reclaim it, instead lauding a growing security relationship between the two countries "in part to meet communist China's rising challenges."
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
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