Secretary of State Antony Blinken rejected President-elect Trump's idea that the United States owns Greenland, saying it is “obviously” not going to happen.
“The idea expressed about Greenland is clearly not a good one, but perhaps more importantly, it's clearly not going to happen, so we're spending a lot of time talking about it,” Blinken said at a press conference in Paris. It shouldn't be wasted.” .
Asked about President Trump's recent comments on acquiring Greenland, Blinken emphasized the importance of supporting allies and strengthening alliances.
“One of the fundamental propositions that we have brought to our work over the past four years is that we are stronger when we work closely with our allies, rather than just saying or doing something. “I think it's about becoming more effective and getting better results.' That might alienate them,” he said.
President Trump was asked Tuesday at a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida about his recent targeting of not only Greenland but also the Panama Canal as a potential U.S. expansion, and said that such efforts would He was asked if he would rule out the use of the military.
“I'm not going to commit to that,” President Trump said. “Maybe there's something I need to do.”
After he spurred controversy, his eldest son Donald Trump Jr. visited the country on a day trip. Greenland is currently part of Denmark, but is pursuing independence from European countries. However, Denmark stressed that the island's territory is not for sale.
The president-elect's proposal faces skepticism from both sides.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrault, who stood next to Blinken at the news conference, echoed the secretary of state's remarks.
“Like Tony, I have a question for you: Do we believe that the United States will occupy Greenland? The answer is no,” Barot said.
