A deal to transfer control over major Panama ports from China-tied CK Hutchison to American firm BlackRock hit roadblocks after Panama’s top auditor accused the Hong Kong business of wrongdoings and owing hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid fees.

The country’s top auditor said CK Hutchison owes the government $300 million, posing a hurdle to a plan touted by Trump to bring the ports under U.S. control.

Donald Trump, since returning to power in January, has vowed to 'take back' control of the strategic waterway that the United States funded, built and controlled until 1999.