Who’s Next? Panama Canal? Greenland? Trump Hints at Military Intervention Beyond Venezuela
Greenland and the Panama Canal which Trump has previously talked about reclaiming from the Central American country, are “almost strategic imperatives” for the U.S. to acquire.
WASHINGTON: Current and former Trump administration officials say more U.S. military action could very well be in the offing. “I think he is serious about all these things,” Victoria Coates, who served as deputy national security adviser to Trump in his first administration, said of the president. She called Greenland and the Panama Canal, which Trump has previously talked about reclaiming from the Central American country, as “almost strategic imperatives” for the U.S. to acquire.
If the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term was focused on brokering peace deals around the globe, his sophomore year is gearing up to be one that emphasizes American military power. That begins with challenging nations in America’s backyard, from adversaries such as Venezuela and Cuba to partners like Colombia and Mexico that Trump wants to more forcefully address narcotics trafficking and illegal migration to the United States. It’s becoming a political sore spot for Trump, whose foreign forays are beginning to frustrate some lawmakers in his own party.
After arresting Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, in a deadly raid on their compound in Caracas, Trump and top U.S. officials warned that other countries in the Western Hemisphere and beyond could be the next targets of U.S. intervention. The list includes Greenland, a territory of NATO ally Denmark, and Iran, which the U.S. bombed last summer. Trump recently threatened to “knock the hell” out of Tehran and said America is “locked and loaded and ready to go” if the regime uses deadly force against protesters.
“I don’t think he felt he was getting very much traction and now wants them to pay attention to this, that he is serious, that he will take action if pushed,” Coates said of Denmark. She said the Greenland and Panama Canal disputes are “much more likely” to be resolved diplomatically than through force. However, the administration refused this week to rule out using the military to take over Greenland, a former Danish colony that’s been under home rule since 1979. Trump has sought to acquire the Arctic territory since his first term.
