Foreign Leaders Lambast Trump Over His Expansionist Policies

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s latest foreign-policy goals, Lebanon’s presidential prospects, and the release of an Italian journalist in Iranian detention.

For the Taking

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump promoted a hard expansionist foreign-policy agenda during a major press conference at his Mar-a-Lago home on Tuesday that has caused consternation among some of America’s closest foreign allies.

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For the Taking

Trump refused to rule out using economic or military force to take control of Greenland and the Panama Canal. “We need them for economic security,” Trump said, doubling down on previous claims that U.S. ownership is vital to national security. Greenland is home to a treasure trove of rare-earth metals and other natural resources, and the Panama Canal serves as one of the world’s busiest thoroughfares for commercial shipping.

Trump has suggested that he would impose tariffs on NATO ally Denmark, which oversees Greenland as an autonomous region, if Copenhagen refuses his purchase offer. In response, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reiterated that Greenland is not for sale. “I don’t think it’s a good way forward to fight each other with financial means when we are close allies and partners,” Frederiksen said.

Panamanian authorities, which oversee the canal, also pushed back against Trump’s threats. “The only hands that control the canal are Panamanian, and that’s how it will continue to be,” Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martínez-Acha Vásquez said. Last month, Trump falsely accused Panama City of overcharging U.S. ships and allowing Chinese soldiers to control the route.

Trump said he also intends to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America,” inspiring far-right U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to announce that she plans to introduce legislation to do so. Mexican authorities immediately denounced the move, and President Claudia Sheinbaum joked that a large swath of North America should be changed to “America Mexicana” to represent the region’s history of exploration and colonization.

Trump also took aim at Canada, criticizing its government for allowing undocumented migrants and fentanyl to enter the United States. Immigration was a key concern of Trump’s presidential campaign, and he has vowed to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada during his first day in office to help curb border crossings. The president-elect also lamented the U.S. trade deficit with Canada, characterizing it as a “subsidy” that Washington gives its northern neighbor.

Having suggested numerous times in recent weeks that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state, Trump was asked by a reporter whether he would consider using military force to annex the sovereign country. He ruled that out but said he would potentially use “economic force” to do so.

Canadian officials have previously downplayed Trump’s statements about making their country part of the United States, saying he was just joking, but they seem to be taking his Tuesday comments more seriously. “President-elect Trump’s comments show a complete lack of understanding of what makes Canada a strong country,” Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly wrote on X. “We will never back down in the face of threats.”

“The joke is over,” Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc said, adding that such rhetoric from Trump is “becoming very counterproductive.”

Other U.S. allies aren’t laughing, either. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rebuked Trump’s expansionist remarks and said he had discussed them with other European leaders. “Borders must not be moved by force. This principle applies to every country, whether in the East or the West. In talks with our European partners, there is an uneasiness regarding recent statements from the US. It is clear: We must stand together,” Scholz wrote on X.

Also during the Tuesday press conference, Trump repeated his threat that “all hell will break out in the Middle East” if Hamas militants do not release the remaining Israeli hostages by the time that he takes office on Jan. 20. “It will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good frankly for anyone,” Trump added. Around 100 captives are believed to still be in Gaza, a third of whom experts believe to be dead.

The president-elect’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, joined cease-fire and hostage release talks in Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday to push for an end to the 15-month war in Gaza. He joined outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden’s top Middle East advisor, Brett McGurk, to push for a truce deal, just days after Israeli negotiators returned to Doha for another round of talks. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that negotiators are “very close to a cease-fire and hostage release agreement,” adding, “I hope that we can get it over the line in the time that we have left.”

Today’s Most Read

What We’re Following

A 13th attempt. Lebanese lawmakers are preparing to convene on Thursday to try to elect a new president. If successful, this would be Beirut’s first step to forming a full-fledged government since the end of then-President Michel Aoun’s term in October 2022. Twelve votes since then have failed to elect a new leader, sparking a yearslong power vacuum that has roiled the country amid devastating economic and military crises.

It is unclear whether Thursday will be the session that breaks the cycle. But “God willing, tomorrow we will have a new president,” caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said.

Foreign pressure to elect a president has reached new heights in recent months following the establishment of a cease-fire between Hezbollah militants and the Israeli military as well as the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The United States is hoping close ally Lebanese Gen. Joseph Aoun will win the presidency, but former Finance Minister Jihad Azour and Maj. Gen. Elias al-Baysari, who heads the General Security agency, are also in the running.

Bargaining chip. Iranian officials freed Italian journalist Cecilia Sala on Wednesday after three weeks in custody. She was detained on Dec. 19—three days after arriving in the country on a journalist visa—and accused of violating Tehran’s laws, though government authorities did not specify what those were.

Italian experts suggest that Iran wanted to use Sala as a bargaining chip for the release of Mohammad Abedini, who was arrested in Milan just three days before Sala on a U.S. warrant accusing him of supplying the drone technology used to kill three U.S. soldiers in Jordan in January 2024.

Negotiations proved particularly challenging, as Italy had to appease U.S. demands while also maintaining its traditionally good relations with Iran. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni praised the “intensive work on diplomatic and intelligence channels” that secured Sala’s release.

Kidnapping allegations. Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González accused government authorities on Tuesday of kidnapping his son-in-law, Rafael Tudares, while Tudares was dropping off his children at school in the capital city of Caracas.

“We demand the immediate release of Rafael Tudares and all political prisoners, who are hostages of a regime that knows it is rejected by the vast majority of Venezuelans who spoke with the force of the vote,” the Unitary Platform opposition coalition said in a statement. Election monitors argue that González rightfully won the presidential election in July.

The office of President Nicolás Maduro has not issued a comment on the allegations, but government authorities have increased security on the streets ahead of inauguration day this Friday, when Maduro is expected to be sworn in.

Last Thursday, Maduro issued a $100,000 reward for any information concerning the whereabouts of González. In response, the opposition leader kicked off an international tour and said he would return to Caracas before the swearing-in ceremony. At the time of the alleged kidnapping, González was in the United States.

Odds and Ends

Don’t get sick. Easier said than done. A decree last Friday in the small Italian village of Belcastro ordered all residents to “avoid contracting any illness that may require emergency medical assistance.” Belcastro is located more than 28 miles away from the nearest emergency medical center, and the town’s on-call doctor does not work weekends, holidays, or after hours. This is “obviously a humorous provocation,” Belcastro Mayor Antonio Torchia said, but he believes that the mandate highlights the shortcomings of the local health care system.

The post Foreign Leaders Lambast Trump Over His Expansionist Policies appeared first on Foreign Policy.