Trump warned against France’s invasion of Greenland: “sovereign borders”

France has warned the president-elect donald trump against the threat of military action in Greenland, adding that European Union It will not remain passive if its “sovereign borders” are attacked.

news week has contacted Trump’s transition team outside of normal business hours and the French Foreign Ministry for comment via email.

Why is it important

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot’s comments suggest that Trump’s renewed calls for the United States to take control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of EU member, not to mention NATO His ally Denmark could lead to a full-blown diplomatic crisis when the president-elect returns to the White House on January 20.

What to know

Trump has revived his proposal for The United States will acquire Greenland in recent weeks. He first raised the idea during his presidency in 2019.

At a news conference at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, Trump intensified his recent calls for refusing to rule out the use of military force seize the island or regain control of the Panama Canal.

In an interview with France Inter radio on Wednesday, Barrot warned that the EU would not allow other nations to attack its “sovereign borders.”

Barrot added that he doesn’t think the United States will “invade” Greenland, but that the current global climate looks like “survival of the fittest.”

In addition to being a member of the EU, Denmark is part of the Western military alliance NATO along with the US.

Trump has frequently threatened to withdraw the united states from nato due to cost concerns.

Both the Danish and Greenlandic governments have expressed strong opposition to any suggestion of a sale of the island to the United States.

Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., visited the capital of Greenland, Nuuk on Tuesday. A source familiar with the trip previously said news week The visit was private to film video content for his podcast and not related to official matters.

What people say

Jean-Noël Barrot, French Foreign Ministeron France Inter radio on Wednesday: “If you ask me if I think the United States will invade Greenland, my answer is no. But have we entered a period where survival is of the fittest? So my answer is yes…

“It is obviously out of the question for the European Union to allow other nations of the world… to attack its sovereign borders, whoever they are. We are a strong continent.”

President-elect Donald Trump discusses military intervention at Mar-a-Lago press conference on Tuesday: “I can’t tell you for sure… you’re talking about Panama and Greenland, no, I can’t tell you for sure about either of those two. But I can say this: we need them for economic security.”

John Bolton, former national security adviser turned Trump critic, on CNN on Tuesday: “When Trump says all this publicly, particularly about not ruling out the use of force, he is cornering the democratically elected government of Greenland and the democratically elected government of Denmark. If you are the prime minister of Denmark, your NATO ally is refuses to say that they are not going to attack their territory, which is what Greenland is.

Donald Trump Jr, speaking about the US purchase of Greenland on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show on Tuesday: “It’s no surprise that the Danish media has spent a lot of time, since my father started talking about this in his first administration, creating very negative opinions about the United States to try to create the narrative and create sentiment against this happening. But what is it about? I saw on the ground… everyone really liked this concept, they loved it and they love America, they love MAGA, they love Trump.

Greenland Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede, in a December statement: “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and we never will be. We must not lose our year-long fight for freedom.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Danish television station TV 2 on Tuesday.: “(Egede) has been very, very clear: there is a lot of support among the people of Greenland that Greenland is not for sale and will not be for sale in the future.”

What happens next?

Any further suggestions of military intervention could strain US relations within NATO.

Egede has been calling for full independence from its former colonial ruler, Denmark. The prime minister has suggested that a referendum on Greenland’s independence could coincide with the island’s parliamentary elections in April.