‘Snowball’s chance in hell’: Canada, Denmark hit back at Donald Trump
Justin Trudeau declares Canada won’t back down against Donald Trump’s threats to merge his country with the US while Denmark and Panama knock back his plans to control Greenland and the Canal.
Outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declared there is not a “snowball’s chance in hell” that Canada will merge with the United States, while Denmark and Panama knocked back the president-elect’s plans to control Greenland and the Panama Canal.
Mr Trudeau’s remarks came after Donald Trump doubled down on plans for the territorial expansion of the US, continuing to talk up his ambitions to make Canada the 51st state. and refusing to rule out the use of military or economic coercion to gain control of Greenland and the Panama Canal.
“There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States,” Mr Trudeau said in a post on X, while also highlighting close bilateral security and trade ties.
Foreign Minister Melanie Joly accused Mr Trump’s remarks of showing “a complete lack of understanding” of Canada.
“Our economy is strong. Our people our strong. We will never back down in the face of threats,” she said
In a marathon press conference at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday (Wednesday AEDT), Mr Trump flagged his key aspirations to help reshape the global order while making a number of audacious announcements – including his intention to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
He affirmed his plan to slap both Mexico and Canada with tariffs, said Greenland and said the Panama Canal were essential for US economic security.
But Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen hit back, telling local media she didn’t “have the fantasy” Mr Trump’s Greenland plans would ever get off the ground, while Panama’s foreign minister said the country wouldn’t negotiate over their waterway.
“The sovereignty of our canal is not negotiable and is part of our history of struggle,” Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha said, noting that President Jose Raul Mulino had made his stance clear.
While he ruled out using the US military against Canada in his press conference, Mr Trump did say he would consider deploying “economic force” to try and merge America with its northern neighbour. He also continued to refer to Mr Trudeau – who this week announced his resignation as prime minister – as the “governor” of the country.
Asked what his plans were to reassert US control over the Panama Canal and Greenland, Mr Trump did not rule out the use of economic and military force to achieve his objectives. This is despite the fact that Greenland is a self-governing region within the Kingdom of Denmark – a founding member of the NATO security compact along with the US.
“I can’t assure you,” Mr Trump said. “You are talking about Panama and Greenland? No. I can’t assure you on either of those two (the use of military or economic coercion).
“But, I can say this: we need them for economic security.”
On Greenland, Mr Trump said that America needed the territory for “national security purposes” to help defend the free world. “I’ve been told that for a long time,” he said. “You have approximately 45,000 people there. People really don’t even know if Denmark has any legal right to it. But if they do, they should give it up. Because we need it for national security. That’s for the free world. I’m talking about protecting the free world.
“You don’t even need binoculars. You look outside. You have China, ships all over the place. You have Russian ships all over the place. We’re not letting that happen,” he said.
Mr Trump argued that he would be prepared to “tariff Denmark at a very high level” in order to fulfil his aspiration to acquire the territory, but noted that he had not yet entered office.
His comments came shortly after his son, Donald Trump Jr, touched down in Nuuk – the capital of Greenland – along with conservative activist, Charlie Kirk, the political director of the 2024 campaign, James Blair, and the head of the incoming White House Office of Presidential Personnel, Sergio Gor.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that Mr Trump’s national security team has already started preliminary discussions about a process by which he would direct the State Department to undertake negotiations with the governments of Denmark and Greenland.
This could potentially happen through a Compacts of Free Association agreement — a financial assistance pact similar to what the US currently has with several Pacific Island nations. The WSJ reported that Mr Trump’s advisers are hoping to launch potential negotiations once the president-elect takes office.
In relation to the Panama Canal, Mr Trump declared that it was “built for our military … It might be that you’ll have to do something. The Panama Canal is vital to our country. It’s being operated by China.”
“We gave the Panama Canal to Panama. We didn’t give it to China. And they’ve abused it. They’ve abused that gift,” he said.
“It should never have been made, by the way. Giving the Panama Canal is why Jimmy Carter lost the election – more so maybe than the hostages (in Iran). The hostages were a big deal.
“They charge more for our ships than they charge for ships of other countries. They charge more for our Navy than they charge for navies of other countries. They laugh at us because they think we’re stupid. But we’re not stupid anymore. So the Panama Canal is under discussion,” Mr Trump said. “They want our help because it’s leaking and not in good repair.
“And they want us to give $3bn to help fix it. And I said ‘well, why don’t you get the money from China? Because China has basically taken it over. China is at both ends of the Panama Canal. China is running the Panama Canal.”
Questioned about whether he would use military force to annex and acquire Canada, Mr Trump provided an assurance that he would not. But he clarified that he would instead be prepared to use “economic force – because Canada and the United States: that would really be something.”
“You get rid of that artificially drawn line and you take a look at what that looks like, and it would also be much better for national security. We basically protect Canada,” he said. “We don’t need anything they have … So why are we losing $200 million a year and more to protect Canada?”
During his press conference, Mr Trump also hinted at his concerns over Ukraine joining NATO and outlined the pressing need to end the war in Eastern Europe.
In relation to the Middle East, Mr Trump continued to intensify his rhetoric. He repeatedly said that, if the remaining hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza were not released by January 20, then “all hell would break out.” He warned it would “not be good for Hamas. I don’t have to say anymore … There should never have been the attack on October 7.”
Dialling up the heat on Europe, Mr Trump said that NATO nations should lift their spending on defence to five per cent of GDP, declaring that “they were in dangerous territory. I think it should be that they can all afford it.” He said that Vladimir Putin of Russia wanted to meet with him.
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