US President Donald Trump refused to rule out using military force to gain control of Greenland—an autonomous territory of Denmark and the world’s largest island.
“I don’t rule it out. I don’t say I’m going to do it, but I don’t rule out anything,” Trump said during the interview with NBC News. “We need Greenland very badly. Greenland is a very small amount of people, which we’ll take care of, and we’ll cherish them, and all of that. But we need that for international security.”
Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in expanding US territory to include Greenland, citing its strategic importance for defense and untapped mineral resources. The idea, previously floated during his presidency, was widely condemned at the time by Danish and Greenlandic officials.
“Highly unlikely” with Canada — But open to talks
When asked about the possibility of using military force to absorb Canada into the US, Trump said it was “highly unlikely” but notably left the door open for diplomatic discussion.
“I don’t see it with Canada. I just don’t see it, I have to be honest with you,” he said.
Trump mentioned that he had recently spoken with Canada’s new Prime Minister, Mark Carney, but clarified they hadn’t yet discussed the idea of Canada becoming the 51st US state. Still, he expressed willingness to bring it up during Carney’s expected visit to Washington.
“I’ll always talk about that. You know why? We subsidize Canada to the tune of $200 billion a year,” Trump claimed. “We don’t need their cars. In fact, we don’t want their cars. We don’t need their energy. We don’t even want their energy. We have more than they do.”
“We have great lumber”: Trump on Canada’s resources
Trump dismissed the idea that the US benefits economically from trade with Canada.
“We don’t want their lumber. We have great lumber. All I have to do is free it up from the environmental lunatics,” he said, in a familiar jab at environmental regulations.
He further argued that incorporating Canada into the US would be beneficial and cost-saving. “If Canada was part of the U.S., it wouldn’t cost us. It would be great … it would be a cherished state.”
“Artificial line drawn”
Trump also downplayed the political boundary separating the US and Canada, calling it an “artificial line.”
“When I look down at that without that artificial line that was drawn with a ruler many years ago – was just an artificial line, goes straight across. You don’t even realize,” he said. “What a beautiful country it would be.”
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