After Venezuela raid, Trump says, ‘We absolutely need Greenland,’ prompting Denmark to warn that the US has ‘no right to annex’ the territory.

One day afterdaring American military operationin Venezuela,President Donald TrumpOn Sunday, he renewed his calls for a US takeover of the Danish territory ofGreenlandfor the sake of the security interests of the United States, while its top diplomat declared that the communist governmentCubais “in great difficulty”.

Trump’s comments andSecretary of State Marco RubioAfterthe eviction ofVenezuelan Nicolás Maduro stressed that the US administration is seriously considering playing a broader role in the Western Hemisphere.

With thinly veiled threats, Trump is rattling his friends and foes across the hemisphere, sparking a pointed question around the world: Who’s next?

“We absolutely need Greenland,” Trump said in an interview with The Atlantic, in which he described the strategically located Arctic island as “surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships.”

Asked what U.S. military action in Venezuela might portend for Greenland, Trump replied: “They’re going to have to see that for themselves. I really don’t know.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

Trump, as part of his administrationNational Security Strategypublished last month, presents the restoration of “American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere” as a central guide for his second go-around in the White House.

Trump also emphasizedthe Monroe Doctrine of the 19th centurywhich rejects European colonialism, as well asRoosevelt Corollary– a justification given by the United States to support Panama’s secession from Colombia, which helped secure the Panama Canal Zone for the United States – as it argues for an assertive approach toward America’s neighbors and beyond.

Trump even quipped that some now call the founding document of the fifth American president the “Don-roe Doctrine.”

Saturday night’s operation by U.S. forces in Caracas and Trump’s Atlantic interview have heightened concerns in Denmark, which has jurisdiction over the vast, mineral-rich island of Greenland.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksenin a statement following Trump’s latest comments on Greenland, he said he had “no right to annex” the territory. She also reminded Trump that Denmark already offers the United States, a NATO member, broad access to Greenland through existing security arrangements.

“So I strongly urge the United States to stop threatening a historically close ally, another country and people who have made it very clear that they are not for sale,” Frederiksen said.

Denmark also signed a European Union statement on Sunday stressing that “the right of the Venezuelan people to determine their future must be respected”, as Trump pledged to “lead” Venezuela and put pressure on the interim president.Delcy Rodriguez, to wait in line.

Greenlanders and Danes were further angered by a social media post following the raid led by a former Trump administration official turned podcaster, Katie Miller. The message shows an illustrated map of Greenland in the colors of the stars and stripes accompanied by the caption: “SOON.”

“And yes, we expect full respect for the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark,” the ambassador said. Jesper Møller Sørensen, Denmark’s chief envoy to Washington, said in a message responding to Miller, who is married to Trump’s influential deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller.

Duringhis presidential transitionand in the first months of his return to the White House, Trump repeatedly called for US jurisdiction over Greenland, and pointedlymilitary force is not excludedtake control of a strategically located, mineral-rich Arctic island owned by an ally.

The issue has been largely ignored in recent months. Then Trump put Greenland back in the spotlight less than two weeks ago when he announced he would nominate a Republican.Governor Jeff Landryas his special envoy to Greenland.

Louisiana’s governor said as a volunteer he would help Trump “integrate Greenland into the United States.”

A severe warning to Cuba

Meanwhile, concern simmered in Cuba, one of Venezuela’s most important allies and trading partners, as Rubio issued a newsevere warningto the Cuban government. Relations between the United States and Cuba have been hostile since the Cuban Revolution of 1959.

Rubio, during an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said Cuban officials were with Maduro in Venezuela before his capture.

“It was the Cubans guarding Maduro,” Rubio said. “He wasn’t guarded by Venezuelan bodyguards. He had Cuban bodyguards.” The secretary of state added that Cuban bodyguards were also responsible for “internal intelligence” within Maduro’s government, including “who is spying on who inside to make sure there are no traitors.”

Trump told reporters Saturday that he views the Cuban government as “very similar” to Venezuela.

“I think Cuba is going to be something that we end up talking about, because Cuba is a failed nation right now, a very seriously failing nation, and we want to help the people,” Trump said.

Cuban authorities called for a rally in support of the Venezuelan government and denounced the U.S. military operation, writing in a statement: “All countries in the region must remain vigilant, as the threat weighs on all of us.” »

Rubio, a former Florida senator and the son of Cuban immigrants, has long maintained that Cuba is a dictatorship that represses its people.

“This is the Western Hemisphere. This is where we live — and we are not going to allow the Western Hemisphere to be a base of operations for the adversaries, competitors and rivals of the United States,” Rubio said.

Cubans, like Bárbara Rodríguez, a 55-year-old biochemical laboratory worker, were following developments in Venezuela. She expressed concern about what she described as an “aggression against a sovereign state.”

“It can happen in any country, it can happen right here. We have always been in the crosshairs,” Rodríguez said.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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