LONDON, January 9. /TASS/. US President-elect Donald Trump is serious about his ambition of trying to buy Greenland, including to expand the US influence in the Western Hemisphere, Reuters reported, citing three sources.
One of them said that Trump is unlikely to use military force to gain control over the autonomous Danish territory. However, sources told Reuters, Trump is serious about applying diplomatic or economic pressure on Denmark. A Trump associate recounted seeing a list of foreign policy priorities drafted by Trump’s top officials after his victory in the November 5 election. "Buying Greenland" was one of those priorities.
The three current and former Trump associates, familiar with the Republican’s thinking, told Reuters that he is interested in territorial expansion as a means of creating a legacy that will be remembered for numerous generations. "The real legacy is you have expanded the United States," one of the sources said.
Trump briefly mentioned the possibility of buying Greenland during his first presidential term. Still, his latest rhetoric underlines that his desire is a deep-rooted ambition rather than a fleeting fancy, the news agency wrote.
Trump said at a news conference in Florida on Tuesday that he cannot rule out using economic or military pressure to gain control over the Panama Canal and Greenland. Late last year, the president elect said that Washington needs control of Greenland. In response, Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede stressed: "We will never be for sale."
During Trump’s first term in 2019, the US media wrote that he was looking to buy Greenland, an autonomous territory within Denmark. Back then, the kingdom refused to discuss selling Greenland as it dismissed the idea as absurd. This time around, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen noted that "Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders."