dpa
Washington
US President-elect Donald Trump has not ruled out using the military to gain control of the Panama Canal or Greenland after being asked various times at an extraordinary press conference on Tuesday.
When challenged by a journalist whether he could assure the world that he would not use military or economic force, Trump said: “No.” The Republican, who will return to the White House on January 20, added at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida that “I’m not going to commit to that now. It might, it might be that you’ll have to do something.” His son Donald Trump Jr was in Greenland on Tuesday on a private trip.
Trump had previously described the transit fees on the Panama Canal as highly unfair and called for control of the waterway to be handed back to the US if it was not treated fairly.
The canal - one of the world’s most important trade routes - was built by the US in the early 20th century before administration was gradually handed over to Panama.
“The Panama Canal is vital to our country. It’s being operated by China,” Trump lamented. He also renewed his call for the US to take over Greenland, which is part of Denmark, and again refused to push back on journalists who asked about possible military action.
“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,” Trump said.
Trump Jr said he had no plans to meet with politicians during his brief stay in Greenland. “Just here as tourists,” Trump Jr said at the airport in the capital Nuuk, according to Greenlandic broadcaster KNR. Trump Jr flew to Greenland on a Trump-branded plane.
