President-elect Donald Trump in Phoenix, Arizona, December 22, 2024 (AFP / JOSH EDELSON)
American takeover of the Panama Canal, calls to buy Greenland or even jokes about an annexation of Canada: Donald Trump makes a series of provocative statements and the world wonders whether he should be taken seriously.
By challenging the sovereignty of certain Washington allies four weeks before his return to the White House, the president-elect recalls that he has the profile of a disruptor-in-chief of the international order.
His recent comments have revived fears dating back to his first term that Donald Trump will be more intransigent with America's allies than with enemies China or Russia.
But some suspect the billionaire of playing on his image as a former reality TV star and of wanting to make headlines to establish himself as a strong man, both abroad and in the United States.
“It's difficult to know how much he means what he says and how much he does it so that his little sentences are picked up,” Frank Sesno, professor at George Washington University and former journalist seconded to the White House.
“He puts other leaders in the position of having to sort out fact from fiction,” he added.
– “Not for sale” –
“For national security and freedom around the world, the United States of America believes that ownership and control of Greenland makes it an absolute necessity,” Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday.
To which the Prime Minister of Greenland, Mute Egede, replied that the territory, rich in natural resources, was “not for sale”.
His recent statements on Greenland echo those he made in 2019. Donald Trump, then president, had openly considered the United States purchasing this Arctic territory, evoking a potential “big real estate transaction ” which would be “strategically interesting”.
The Miraflores locks of the Panama Canal in Panama City on December 23, 2024 ( AFP / ARNULFO FRANCO )
Earlier in the weekend, the billionaire had threatened to regain control of the Panama Canal and attacked the “ridiculous” rights of passage to which American ships are subject.
He also pointed to China's growing influence over the canal.
The President of Panama, José Raul Mulino, demanded “respect” for his country and assured that “every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent areas belongs to Panama and will continue to belong to it.” “We’ll see,” replied Donald Trump.
Control of the Panama Canal, completed by the United States in 1914, was fully returned to the Central American country in 1999, under an agreement signed by American President Jimmy Carter in 1977.
Last week, the former real estate developer repeated that it would be an “excellent idea” to make Canada the 51st American state, after threatening this neighboring country to increase customs duties by 25%.
– “Joke?” –
“Is it a joke, is it serious? Imagine you are the president of Panama, how do you react to such a situation? You cannot ignore it and your country will not let you do it. Such comments have a big impact,” says Frank Sesno.
Donald Trump's rhetoric, however, could be part of a broader strategy.
“His statements on Greenland may be aimed at China,” muses Stephanie Pezard, political science researcher at the Rand Corporation.
Just as Mr. Trump expressed concern about Beijing's influence in Panama, China's growing presence in the Arctic and its ties with Russia are “something that really concerns the United States,” notes Ms. Pezard. .
But it could also be a signal to Denmark: “If you are too friendly with China, you will find us in your way”, even though Denmark and Greenland have been “very good allies within NATO”, continues the researcher.
Because “Buying” Greenland is an unrealizable project, “not only in terms of international law, but more broadly in the world order that the United States is trying to maintain,” believes Stephanie Pezard.
