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Posted on Dec 23, 2024 / Politics / USA

US President-elect Donald Trump continues to undermine the media and social networks with loud statements.

The other day, he again talked about buying Greenland, and also threatened to return American control over the Panama Canal.

Trump lashed out at "excessive tolls" for using the Panama Canal. "Our Navy and commerce have been treated very unfairly and unwisely. The fees charged by Panama are laughable, especially considering the extraordinary generosity shown to Panama by the US," he wrote on Truth Social.

His claims relate to the fact that the Panama Canal was built with American money. He also criticized 39th President Jimmy Carter's decision to hand it over to Panama for just $1 under a 1977 treaty. According to Trump, the channel is vital for the US, as more than 70% of all transits go to US ports.

"It was handed over not for the benefit of others, but as a sign of cooperation between us and Panama. If the principles... are not respected, then we demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full," he added.

Every meter of the canal belongs to Panama, and sovereignty cannot be a subject of discussion, said Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino. To which Trump replied "We'll see" and "Welcome to the USA channel", posting a picture with an American flag.

As for Greenland, he announced PayPal co-founder Ken Howery, the former US ambassador to Sweden, as a candidate for US ambassador to Denmark. "For the purpose of national security and freedom around the world, the United States of America believes that possession and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity. Ken will cope with the task perfectly," Trump wrote.

And this is not his first attempt to get Greenland. The idea was discussed with senior advisers as early as 2018, and Senator Tom Cotton offered to buy the island in an appeal to the Danish ambassador. The discussions became public in 2019, after which Greenland and Denmark officials rejected the possibility of a sale.

Statements ranged from diplomatic comments that "Greenland is not for sale" to adamant denials stating that this is "absolute nonsense". "This is an absurd discussion because Greenland is not for sale. Greenland is not Danish. Greenland is Greenlandic," Danish Foreign Minister Mette Frederiksen said.

As a result, then Trump even canceled the planned visit to Denmark.

The very idea of ​​gaining control over Greenland arose even before Trump. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the US is believed to have made at least two serious attempts. The reason such discussions are even possible lies in the island's status.

Greenland became a Danish colony in 1814, and in 1953 it was recognized as part of the Kingdom of Denmark. 20 years later, it even joined the European Economic Community (the prototype of the current European Union), but later left it. After the 1979 referendum, Denmark gave the island the right to self-government, and in 2009 - even more power.

Today, Greenland is an autonomous territory and essentially a separate country. Along with Denmark and the Faroe Islands, it is one of the three countries that make up the kingdom. Copenhagen remains in the sphere of international relations, defense and control over currency policy. Greenland resolves all internal political and economic issues independently.

Its area exceeds 2 million square kilometers and it is the largest island on Earth, which is washed by the waters of the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. It is located in the northeast of North America and geographically belongs to it. But politically it is still considered Europe.

The first attempt to get Greenland was in the second half of the 19th century. The then US Secretary of State William Seward (a supporter of territorial expansion) also bet on attempts to wrest Canada from the hands of the British Empire, and his policy led to the purchase of Alaska from Russia.

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