CNN
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If President-elect Donald Trump is serious, he seems to be planning an expansion of American territory comparable to the Louisiana Purchase or the deal that took Alaska from Russia.
Over the past week, he has provoked Canadian officials by suggesting the United States could absorb its northern neighbor and create its 51st state. He threatened to take over the Panama Canal. The canal is an American waterway managed for a quarter of a century by its Central American namesake. And on Sunday, he resurfaced his first-term desire to capture Greenland, a Danish territory he had long eyed.
In President Trump’s case, the difference between serious policy proposals and exaggerated rhetoric aimed at attracting media attention or energizing his base is not always clear-cut. At other times, his provocations appeared to spark attempts to close a deal.
In fact, when President Trump voiced his threat to take back the Panama Canal this weekend, he announced his plan to reduce tolls on U.S. ships that use the canal to travel between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. This was done out of consideration for the nation in order to avoid this.
“Panamanian authorities, please lead the way,” he warned Sunday in remarks to conservative activists in Arizona.
Still, these proposals are strikingly similar in their focus on expanding America’s overseas presence. And for someone who argued during the campaign that the United States should retreat from foreign interference, that idea is a modern version of the 19th century doctrine of Manifest Destiny, a belief in America’s divine rights extending across the continent. It’s bringing a lot of feedback.
President Trump said Sunday night that ownership of Greenland is “absolutely necessary” for “national security and freedom purposes around the world.” His pitch for seizing the Panama Canal, which he described as a “vital national asset” decades after American control, comes as President Trump often calls it “America First.” It reflected similar nationalist policies expressed.
In a speech in Arizona this weekend, President Trump reiterated his plans to designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, a distinction that could precede the use of military force on mainland Mexico. President Trump has threatened to drop bombs on fentanyl labs and send in special forces to eliminate cartel leaders, an invasion that violates Mexico’s sovereignty and threatens its relationship with the United States’ largest trading partner. may confuse.
President Trump’s transition team has refused to reveal whether these latest statements reflect true ambitions or other motives, instead telling CNN that Trump’s recent comments and social media posts reflect I pointed out the post.
Several people and officials close to President Trump’s transition were unable to pinpoint the origins of the sudden interest in ongoing activity at the Panama Canal, a topic that Trump did not address during his campaign. . But one adviser said President Trump regularly brings up issues that energize him, from people ranging from longtime friends to new acquaintances. He pointed out that there was. Since winning last month’s election, Trump has spent most of his days hosting close allies, big businesses, donors and heads of state at his Palm Beach mansion.
Another adviser said concerns about the treatment of American companies in Panama likely resonated with Trump because “trade is a top priority for him.” Pressuring Panama to lower fees for ships using the canal could also help offset expected increases in product costs from tariffs President Trump plans to impose on foreign goods. .
“Even though it may sound a little outlandish, I always take him seriously,” Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Florida, said of President Trump’s comments on Fox Business on Monday. “This is a legitimate threat to Panama.”
Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino posted a lengthy statement on social media in Spanish and English, declaring ownership of the port “non-negotiable.” Built in the early 20th century, the canal was operated by the United States until 1999, when it became fully owned by Panama under a treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter two decades earlier that guaranteed permanent use of the canal by the United States. handed over to.
“I wish to accurately represent that every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent areas belongs and will continue to belong to Panama,” Mulino wrote.
But the response did little to demoralize Trump and his allies, who responded on social media with memes and images that doubled down on Trump’s latest claims.
“Welcome to the American Canal,” President Trump posted on Truth Social, along with a photo of the American flag sailing through the waterway.
Mulino ridiculed President Trump’s criticism that Panama cannot guarantee the canal’s operation in an interview with CNN Spanish contributor Andres Oppenheimer that will air this Sunday. “It shows a gross ignorance of history. On December 31st, this canal will celebrate its 25th anniversary under Panamanian control,” he said, adding that the expansion project Panama has accomplished since the U.S. handed over the canal. Construction work including construction was highlighted. It benefits our national economy. ”
Trump’s first proposal in his first term, to buy Greenland from Denmark, was similarly rejected.
“Greenland is ours,” Danish Prime Minister Mute Egede said in a Facebook post on Monday. “We are not for sale and we will never be for sale.”
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s office echoed Egede, calling Trump’s first-term proposal that Greenland could be purchased “ridiculous.”
“The administration looks forward to working with the new (Trump) administration. Transatlantic cooperation is critical in a complex security-political situation such as the one we are currently experiencing,” he said on Monday. said the statement. “Regarding the statement regarding Greenland, the Prime Minister’s Office has no comment other than a reference to the Prime Minister of Greenland’s statement that Greenland is not for sale and is open to cooperation,” the statement added.
President Trump first privately discussed the idea and acknowledged it publicly in 2019, but ultimately downplayed his concerns.
“Strategically it’s interesting and we’ll be interested, but we’ll have a little discussion with them,” he said at the time. “It’s not number one, I can tell you that.”
But he resurfaced the idea Sunday in a news release announcing the selection of PayPay co-founder Ken Howley as ambassador to Denmark.
President Trump’s proposal to annex Canada is less serious and appears to be the one he publicly stabbed Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after the two recently dined at Mar-a-Lago. However, the president-elect continued to tease the idea on social media.
“I think it’s a great idea,” he wrote in a recent post.
The episode stems from another provocation by President Trump, this time imposing 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico, illustrating the president’s approach to negotiations with foreign leaders. .
In many ways, this ploy had its intended result. The leaders of both countries immediately sought an audience with President Trump and reaffirmed their commitment to support the United States on border issues. And it provided an early means for President Trump to claim victory over foreign targets.
“President Trump is securing the border,” the transition team wrote in a recent release, “and he hasn’t even taken office yet.”
