President-elect Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would not rule out using military or economic coercion to take control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, doubling down on his recent remarks about the potential U.S. acquisition of those territories.
Asked by a reporter whether he could assure the public that he wouldn’t forcefully wrest control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, Trump said he wouldn’t commit to that promise.
“No, I can’t assure you on either of those two, but I can say this, we need them for economic security,” he told reporters during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago.
Following his reelection victory in November, Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in acquiring the Panama Canal and Greenland.
“The Panama Canal is vital to our country. It’s being operated by China,” Trump said. “We gave the Panama Canal to Panama, we didn’t give it to China. They’ve abused that gift. It should never have been made.”
China has invested heavily in Panama in recent years and currently operates two of the country’s five main ports.
Trump added that Jimmy Carter’s decision to relinquish control of the Panama Canal was “a big mistake” — one that Trump believes cost Carter the 1980 election to Ronald Reagan, even more so than the Iran hostage crisis that lasted 444 days.
The incoming president’s remarks on the 39th president come over a week after Carter, 100, died at his home in Plains, Ga. Carter’s national funeral is set to be held on Thursday in Washington, D.C.
On Tuesday, Donald Trump Jr. flew to Greenland where he said he was visiting “as a tourist” and claimed he wasn’t meeting with Danish and Greenlandic officials about his father’s plan to buy the Arctic territory.
Denmark, which controls Greenland, has strongly opposed the idea, although Greenland’s prime minister recently said the territory wants its independence.
Accompanied by media personality Charlie Kirk and incoming Trump administration official Sergio Gor, Trump Jr. arrived in Greenland to reportedly shoot video content for a podcast, according to Newsweek. The team behind the hit documentary series, Art of the Surge, which took Americans behind the scenes in Trump’s inner circle leading up to the election, is filming footage in Greenland for its second season.
Trump threatened to place massive tariffs on Denmark if it doesn’t give up Greenland, which he said the U.S. needs for “national security purposes.”
Trump has also suggested Canada could merge with the U.S. and become the 51st state. When asked whether he would consider using military force to annex Canada, Trump replied he would only use “economic force.”
Once in office, Trump is expected to impose a 25 percent tariff on all Canadian goods imported into the U.S. The threat played a role in sending Canada into political turmoil, culminating in Justin Trudeau’s resignation on Monday as leader of the nation’s ruling Liberal Party and eventual departure as prime minister. Trudeau will remain prime minister until his party chooses a new leader.
During Tuesday’s press conference, Trump also spoke about renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America since “we do most of the work there.”
“We’re going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, which has a beautiful ring. That covers a lot of territory, the Gulf of America — what a beautiful name. And it’s appropriate,” Trump said in a surprise announcement.
The president-elect reiterated his vow to impose a 25 percent tariff on Mexican goods, which he plans on using to convince Mexico to help stop illegal immigration and the flow of fentanyl across the southern border.
“We want to get along with everybody,” Trump said, “but it takes two to tango.”