US President-elect Donald Trump has angered world leaders by pushing forward with brazen foreign policy plans.
Speaking to reporters from his Mar-a-Lago estate during a wide-ranging news conference Tuesday evening, two weeks before taking the reins of the White House, Trump made surprising claims about potentially joining the NATO and Ukraine, Israel’s war on Gaza, and Greenland, Canada and the Panama Canal.
As was the case during Trump’s first term, many are suggesting that the seriousness of the outlandish ideas he has put forward is highly questionable. But that didn’t stop the world’s media from taking the bait.
Here are the main takeaways and some initial answers:
NATO and Ukraine
Trump told reporters he sympathized with the Russian position that Ukraine should not be part of NATO.
“A lot of the problem is that Russia – for many, many years, long before Putin – said, ‘NATO can never get involved in Ukraine’s affairs.’ Well, they said it. It’s like set in stone,” Trump said.
“And somewhere along the line, Biden said, ‘No. They should be able to join NATO. Well, Russia has someone on its doorstep, and I can understand their feelings about that.
Members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have formally expressed support for Ukraine’s possible membership since the 2008 Bucharest Summit, and the Biden administration continues to support Ukraine’s possible membership. Ukraine to NATO.
Meanwhile, Trump has continued to complain that Washington’s partners in NATO are not spending enough on defense and suggested that the United States could review its commitment to the military alliance at unless they improve their game.
Most European members recently decided to increase their spending to 2 percent of GDP, the minimum currently recommended by NATO. However, Trump demanded a massive spending increase on Tuesday, calling for 5 percent spending.
Tensions in the Middle East
Trump said “all hell would break loose” if a captive release deal was not reached between Hamas and Israel by the time he took office.
“It won’t be good for Hamas, and frankly, it won’t be good for anyone,” he said.
Regarding Syria, Trump has been ambiguous about the future of US involvement in Syria. “I won’t tell you, because it’s part of a military strategy,” he said.
Acquire Canada
While the president-elect has ruled out using military force against Canada, he has threatened to use “economic force” against Ottawa, after suggesting late last year that Canada should become the 51st state American.
He called the border with the United States’ northern neighbor an “artificially drawn line.”
Canada’s reaction to Trump’s remarks was swift. “There is no chance that Canada will be part of the United States,” outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a message on X.
Take Greenland and the Panama Canal
The president-elect has refused to rule out the use of American military power to achieve his ambitions regarding Greenland and the Panama Canal.
“I’m not going to commit to that,” Trump said when asked if he would rule out the use of the military. “You may need to do something. The Panama Canal is vital to our country. He added: “We need Greenland for national security purposes. »
The Panama Canal has been controlled solely by the eponymous country since the United States ended its joint partnership for control of this strategic waterway in 1999.
The Panamanian government categorically rejected Trump’s vision on Wednesday.
“The sovereignty of our canal is not negotiable,” Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha told a news conference. “The only hands that control the canal are the Panamanians and it will remain that way,” he added, emphasizing that the canal serves humanity and global trade.
An autonomous territory of Denmark, a longtime U.S. ally, Trump said the U.S. needs Greenland for “national security purposes.”
France warned Trump on Wednesday against any threats against the “sovereign borders” of the European Union.
“There is no question for the EU of letting other nations in the world, whoever they may be, attack its sovereign borders,” Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told France Inter radio.
