Germany emphasizes the international principle that borders should not be changed by force, said a government spokesman after the statements of the newly elected US President Donald Trump about Greenland and Canada, while the head of Danish diplomacy said that Greenland could become independent, but not an American federal state, reports Hina .
“As always, the honorable principle of the Charter of the United Nations and the Helsinki Agreement applies, that is, that borders should not be changed by force,” said the spokesman at a regular press conference, Reuters reports.
The spokesman declined to answer a question about how seriously Germany was taking Trump’s statements.
On Tuesday, Trump did not want to rule out the use of military or economic action to take over the Panama Canal and Greenland, and floated the idea of Canada becoming a US federal state.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rejected Trump’s suggestion on Tuesday.
“The odds of Canada becoming a part of the United States of America are the odds of a snowball in hell. Workers in both of our countries benefit from being each other’s largest trade and security partners,” Trudeau wrote on the X platform.
Greenland Prime Minister Mutu Egede spoke with the Danish king in Copenhagen, a day after Trump’s remarks put the fate of the Danish-ruled island at the top of global headlines.
Trump’s eldest son Donald Trump Jr. he was on a private visit to Greenland, a day after his father, who takes office as US president on January 20, said he would not rule out using military or economic action to annex Greenland to the United States.
Greenland, the world’s largest island, has been part of Denmark for 600 years, although its 57,000 inhabitants now manage domestic affairs independently. The government of Greenlandic Prime Minister Mute Egede is striving for the island’s eventual independence.
“We fully understand that Greenland has its own ambitions. If they come true, Greenland will become independent, but it hardly has the ambition to become a federal state in the United States of America,” said Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen.
Rasmussen told reporters that the increased security concerns of the United States of America in the Arctic are justified due to increased Russian and Chinese activity in the region.
“I don’t think we are in a foreign policy crisis,” Rasmussen said. “We are open to a dialogue with the Americans about how we could eventually cooperate even more closely than now to ensure the fulfillment of American ambitions,” he added.
Yet, while Denmark itself played down the seriousness of Trump’s threat to its territory, the openly expressed ambition of the returnee to the White House to expand US borders has rattled European allies less than two weeks before taking office.
Relations between Greenland and Denmark have been strained recently due to allegations of mistreatment of Greenlanders during the colonial era.
Egede said that the island is not for sale, and in his New Year’s speech he reinforced his desire for independence. Denmark says that only Greenlanders can decide the fate of the territories.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she could not imagine that Trump’s ambitions would lead to US military intervention in Greenland. Denmark’s military capabilities there are limited to four inspection vessels, the Challenger reconnaissance aircraft and dog sled patrols.
Although many Greenlanders dream of independence from Denmark, the king remains popular on the island where he has spent considerable time, including a four-month expedition. The royal court last month changed its coat of arms to enlarge the polar bear symbolizing Greenland.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday that he did not believe the US would attack the huge Arctic island.
“It is obviously out of the question that the European Union would allow other countries in the world to attack their sovereign borders, whoever they are,” Barrot told France Inter radio. “We are a strong continent,” he added.
(Vijesti.ba)
