After Canada and the Panama Canal, Donald Trump wants Greenland

After expressing interest in Canada and the Panama Canal, Donald Trump is now turning his attention to Greenland. The president-elect is revisiting his previous, unsuccessful proposals from his first term to purchase Greenland from Denmark. This comes as he continues to spar with allied countries even before taking office on January 20.

In a press release issued on Sunday to announce his ambassador nomination to Denmark, Trump stated, "For reasons of national security and international freedom, the United States believes that ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity."

Trump’s renewed focus on Greenland follows his recent comments suggesting that the U.S. could regain control of the Panama Canal unless rising shipping costs associated with the waterway are addressed. He also proposed that Canada become the 51st U.S. state and referred to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as "the governor of the great state of Canada."

Greenland, the largest island in the world, is strategically located between the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. About 80% of the island is covered by an ice cap, and it hosts a significant U.S. military base.

Danish Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede dismissed Trump’s comments, reiterating that Greenland is not for sale. "Greenland belongs to us. We are not for sale and we never will be. We must not lose the fight we have been waging for years for freedom," he said in a statement.

Trump had canceled a planned visit to Denmark in 2019 after his offer to buy Greenland was rejected by Copenhagen, leading to the abandonment of the proposal.

In addition to Greenland, Trump also commented over the weekend that the U.S. was being "ripped off" over the Panama Canal. He suggested, "If the moral and legal principles of this magnanimous gesture are not respected, we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States in its entirety, quickly and without questions."

Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino responded firmly, stating in a video, "Every square meter of the canal belongs to Panama and will continue to belong to Panama." Trump countered on his social media platform with, "We'll see about that!" He also shared a photo of an American flag planted at the canal with the words "Welcome to the Canal USA."

The U.S. built the Panama Canal in the early 1900s but relinquished control to Panama on December 31, 1999, under a treaty signed in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter.

In 2023, the canal faced severe droughts, impacting its reservoirs and forcing a reduction in daily shipping slots. Consequently, the canal raised fees for shipping companies using its services.

Trump's remarks about Greenland and the Panama Canal come after a post where he claimed, "Canadians want Canada to become the 51st state," alongside an image of him standing next to a Canadian flag. Trudeau responded by suggesting Trump was joking about annexing Canada. The comment was made during a dinner at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, where the two discussed Trump’s plan to impose a 25% tariff on all Canadian imports.