Trump threatens land grabs of Panama Canal, Greenland, even by force. Can he?: ANALYSIS

As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office later this month, he is stepping up threats to seize a critical shipping artery and strategic foreign territory, suggesting he may even use military force to do so.

“I’m not going to commit to that,” Trump said Tuesday on whether he would rule out using the U.S. military to control the Panama Canal and Greenland. press conference at Mar-a-Lago.

“Maybe something needs to be done. Look, the Panama Canal is vital to our country,” he continued, adding, “We need Greenland for national security.” He added, “we need them for economic security. The Panama Canal was built for our military.”

Trump also blamed former President Jimmy Carter for overseeing the diplomatic negotiations to reverse the Panama Canal, which the US completed in 1914 until Jimmy Carter relinquished power in 1977 with the Panama Canal Treaty.

“The Panama Canal is a disgrace. What happened to the Panama Canal? Jimmy Carter gave it to them for a dollar, and they should have treated us well. I thought it was a terrible thing,” Trump said.

Despite Trump’s focus on expanding America’s territory, the strategy to achieve his goals remains vague, and many of the president-elect’s claims to rationalize acquisitions are controversial and questionable, experts say.

They generally agree that Greenland has an important strategic location and is rich in lithium, graphite and other minerals. However, the world’s largest island already hosts a US military base and a long-standing treaty gives Washington significant control over Greenland’s defenses. Greenland and Denmark are also NATO allies.

“People really don’t know if Denmark has a legal right or not. But if they do, they should leave because we need it for national security. That’s for the free world. I’m talking about protecting the free world,” Trump said.

Regarding Panama, Trump has repeatedly said that the canal is “run by China” and that US ships are charged more to pass through it than ships used by other countries.

“They don’t treat us fairly. They charge more for our ships than other countries’ ships. They charge more for our ships. the army than what they charge for the navies of other countries”, he complained. “They laugh because they think we’re stupid, but we’re not stupid anymore.”

In fact, the Panama Canal Authority (PCA) — controlled by the Government of Panama — operates the waterway, and the 1977 diplomatic treaty with the United States mandates that all countries must allow it to be used for a “peaceful transition” and states that “There shall be no discrimination against any nation, or its towards citizens or subjects, regarding conditions or positions”.

Accordingly, the rates and fees associated with crossing the canal are determined by the size and type of vessel and the cargo it carries, not by the flag under which the vessel sails. Although the costs associated with the use of the waterway have increased in recent years, the limits imposed on the canal’s capacity due to a historic drought are behind the increase in prices.

China’s expanding influence in Panama and Central America has raised concerns on both sides of the corridor, but the same 1977 treaty allows the US to intervene if the canal’s neutrality is threatened.

Authorizing a military intervention to take over the Panama Canal — or Greenland — is another matter.

The authorities of Panama and Greenland have repeatedly said that they will not give territory to Trump, the president of Panama insists that the canal “will remain in our hands forever” and the Prime Minister of Denmark has insisted that “Greenland is not for sale”.

The US Constitution gives Congress the sole ability to declare war on a foreign power, and — once war is declared — gives the president broad powers to carry out the conflict.

But presidents have often used military force without congressional approval, including against Panama.

In December 1989, former President George HW Bush launched an invasion of Panama to overthrow the country’s de facto ruler, General Manuel Noriega. The intervention, which was widely supported by the American public at the time, put Panama on the path to democracy, but was condemned by the United Nations as a violation of international law.

Trump has also said he could use economic pressure to force countries to capitulate to his agenda, including Canada, which the president-elect has repeatedly said should become the 51st state.

“Because of Canada and the United States, that would really be something. You take away that artificially drawn line, and you look at what it looks like, and it would be much better for national security as well,” Trump said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded to Trump’s remarks in a post on X, writing that “there is not a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada will become part of the United States.”

“The workers and communities of our two countries benefit from being each other’s largest trade and security partner,” he said.

Congress has delegated much of its foreign economic authority to the White House, but the biggest speed bump in Trump’s ability to impose tariffs on Canada may be the trade deal negotiated by Trump himself: the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

The USMCA — which is not due for review until 2026 — allows any member to withdraw, but requires the exiting country to wait six months before revoking benefits to other parties.

The president-elect’s clearest way to fulfill one of his pledges to redraw the world map may be to rename the Gulf of Mexico, which he has vowed to make the “Gulf of America.”

“What a beautiful name,” he said. “And it’s appropriate.”