Trump's expansionist designs, from Greenland to the Panama Canal

President-elect Donald Trump told a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Tuesday that he would not rule out the use of military force to take control of Greenland and the Panama Canal, and warned Canada of heavy economic sanctions after suggesting that it should become part of the United States as the “51st state”. 

Since his re-election to the White House in November 2024, Trump has advanced a series of lofty but bewildering claims on foreign territories, starting with the USA’s northern neighbour. 

Trump called Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the “governor” of the “Great State of Canada” in December while proposing that the country become the 51st US state in what was widely seen as a jest.  

Trump has since repeatedly mocked Canada with similar comments. And on Tuesday, following Trudeau’s surprise resignation, Trump said the “artificially drawn” border between the US and Canada should be erased while threatening to impose 25 percent tariffs on imports if Canada did not join the US.  

Trudeau, for his part, has said there is “not a snowball’s chance in hell” of Canada joining the United States.

The soon-to-be 47th president of the United States also has his eyes set on Greenland and the Panama Canal. 

In recent weeks, Trump has reiterated claims made during his first administration regarding Greenland, saying the “ownership and control” of which is an “absolute necessity”.

In 2019, while still in office, Trump expressed interest in purchasing the semi-autonomous territory from Denmark: an idea that was quickly dismissed by leaders in both Denmark and Greenland.  

Trump’s expansionist designs did not stop there, however. In late December he demanded that one of the world’s most important waterways, the Panama Canal, be returned to the US.  

Slamming the canal’s “ridiculous” fees, Trump noted that the passageway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans was “vital” to US shipping.  

The French foreign minister on Wednesday warned Trump against attacking Europe’s "sovereign borders”.  

Old school war-making

Trump’s claims lack both legitimacy or authority, and many see them as no more than political grandstanding. But others say it’s possible Trump may try to act on them.

"There's a lot of sabre-rattling. It's sort of gesturing, posturing to create an image. [But] it doesn't mean it doesn't matter,” said Corina Lacatus, a political communications specialist and senior lecturer in global governance at Queen Mary University of London. 

Citing Trump’s interest in buying Greenland during his previous mandate, Lacatus said that Trump “cares a lot about consistency”. His pursuit of the Arctic island may be meant to show voters that “there's some sort of continuity, that he delivers on his promises". 

But this time round, Trump is looking even farther as he adds Canada and the Panama Canal to his list.  

"He feels emboldened not only by the fact that he won in a pretty significant way, but he also sees other countries where people who share his ideas are being elected. There is a momentum for this kind of politics," said René Lindstädt, a specialist in US politics at the University of Birmingham. 

Trump’s display of one-upmanship is also spurred on by the rise of the far right and populist rhetoric in Europe.  

"With the likes of [Prime Minister] Giorgia Meloni in Italy and the rise of the [far-right Alternative for Germany] AfD, with an election being right around the corner, Trump thinks he has an opportunity," Lindstädt said.  

Trump is looking to “demonstrate the US is still a great power in the world that can annex territories”, Lacatus said. 

“What I think he's trying to do now is tap into this kind of good-old, realist war-making that involves, you know, not necessarily sending drones, but like occupying territory, [the] annexation of territory, which is very old-school war-making", she said.  

Trump’s statements can also be seen as the direction on foreign policy that the incoming US administration will be taking.  

President Joe Biden and former US president Barack Obama “would have worked through all these alliances and would have signalled, before taking office, that that's the path they want to pursue” Lacatus said. What Trump is doing instead “is saying, 'I will annex territory, and I don't care'." 

Strategic claims 

Far-fetched as they may seem, Trump’s territorial claims fall in line with his foreign policy objectives, said Richard Johnson, senior lecturer in US politics and policy at Queen Mary University of London. 

"One of Trump's objectives with these bold claims is working on energy independence, where Canada and Greenland could play a role,” Johnson said. 

Home to the Pituffik Space Base, the northernmost US military base, Greenland is of geostrategic importance to Washington. 

The territory also has abundant natural resources, similar to Canada, with both regions particularly rich in hydrocarbons (shale gas in Canada, oil in Greenland), a factor that is crucial to Trump, who speaks a lot about US energy independence, Lindstädt said. 

In fact, US energy independence already hit record levels last year, and the US has been a net exporter of energy since 2019.

Meanwhile, the Panama Canal, a vital passage for global trade, is also used by Chinese ships. And control of the Canal would provide Trump with additional economic leverage over China.

Trump-style negotiations 

As Trump continues to reiterate his claims on Canada, Greeland and the Panama Canal, many wonder whether he would act on them when he takes office on January 20.  

“What he is doing is actually a typical way that Trump approaches negotiation,” Johnson said. “And if you look at the long history of his career in business as well as in politics, [your] beginning negotiation position is to ask for the impossible. And then you try to move the other side as close to a favourable position … as possible.”

“Trump understands how to generate media attention,” Johnson said, adding: “He understands the value of shock claims." 

Despite Trump’s record of breaking promises, it would be “wrong and naive to think Donald Trump would not press the claims further if given the opportunity", Lindstädt said. 

For Trump, it’s “his final shot to enter history as a powerful figure”, Lindstädt said, adding that the seeming lack of consequences for Trump may just spur him into more extreme actions. 

"If there is not enough pushback, it might incentivise him to push further. At the end, he might look at things and say, 'Why wouldn't I?'"

This article has been adapted from the original by Natasha Li.