Gustaf Kilander
Tue 31 December 2024
President-elect Donald Trump has boasted on social media about taking over Greenland, making Canada the 51st state, and wresting control of the Panama Canal.
His expansionist rhetoric has worried allies but elated enemies, with Russians viewing the statements as evidence that Trump isn’t opposed to foreign wars of conquest, as is the Kremlin, despite what he has otherwise stated.
To Russian President Vladimir Putin’s top propagandists, Trump’s statements have revealed that he would blithely invade a country unable to fight back, according to Julia Davis, an observer of Russian media and columnist at The Daily Beast.
The president-elect would expect a victory parade, like after Russia’s 2014 seizure of Crimea from Ukraine, which Trump called “genius” and “savvy.” Putin tried and failed to take the whole of Ukraine in 2022, with Kremlin insiders believing that Trump only disapproved of the war because it grew in length and cost.
The top Kremlin supporters in Russia believe that Trump can be convinced to back Russia’s expansionist goals if Putin gets a chance to influence him. They’re strongly opposed to the notion of negotiating with Trump’s Ukraine envoy, retired Lieutenant-General Keith Kellogg. The ultimate scenario for them would be to make the Russian invasion of Ukraine appear legitimate, and the recognition of their territorial requirements.
They view Trump’s statements about Greenland, Canada, and Panama as validating Russia’s current and future acquisitions.
Host Dmitry Kiselyov of Vesti Nedeli, or The Weekly News, used part of his Sunday broadcast to outline American expansionism under Trump.
“Trump isn’t joking. He is determined to expand American territorial possessions. Personally, I am convinced that he will succeed,” said Kiselyov, according to a translation by Davis.
“Trump will grab strategically important parts of the world for America ... What is funny is to see whether anyone in the Old World will try to sanction the United States in response to its territorial expansion. This is when we will find out how principled the lovers of sanctions truly are,” he added.
“Think about it. If Trump gets away with all of this, inspired by his success, he might look at the rest of the globe, focus on vulnerable spots, and keep going. Where will he stop? Doesn’t it mean that others can do the same?” Kiselyov asked.
Pundits on The Evening With Vladimir Solovyov spent most of last Thursday’s broadcast celebrating how the world will change under Trump.
“Trump politely announced that the U.S. will be expanding its borders,” Soloyov pointed out, though many in the U.S. would take issue with “politely.”
Andrey Lugovoy is a member of the State Duma and was involved in the lethal poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko.
He noted on the program: “It feels like we spent the last four years in Biden’s madhouse and now we’re gradually transitioning to Trump’s circus,” though he added that it’s unclear if Trump is “joking” when he speaks about Canada, Greenland, and Panama.
“These are awesome statements! No, he is not joking ... of course he isn’t joking!” Solovyov responded. “Do you think I’m kidding when I say that Finland, Warsaw, the Baltics, Moldova, and Tallinn should come back home? Do you think I’m joking? No! They should all rejoin the Russian Empire. Followed by Alaska, by the way. Give it back.”
The “way he is rationalizing it is tremendous. We should follow his example and quietly take everything back,” he added.
Lugovoy indicated how Trump’s takeover threats should embolden Russia’s violent aggression in the Ukraine. “My friends, Trump’s insane statements show that there should not be any ceasefire. Why would we need a ceasefire when we’re confidently moving forward?” Lugovoy asked.
Solyov added: “By taking Canada, Trump is basically saying, ‘Russians, you can take the Baltics.”
He underscored: “I believe that what Trump is doing benefits us greatly. Trump is totally destroying any illusions that anyone might have still had about the summit of democracies, about respecting the opinions of NATO allies.”
Professor Dmitry Evstafiev argued that “with his approach of geographical enlargement” Trump has “buried the entire collective West. There is no collective West, and it will never be united again.”
Military expert Mikhail Khodaryonok said in the wake of Trump’s statements about Canada, Greenland, and Panama, “we can now consider special military operations as the norm for resolving arguments between countries.”
Kremlin Insiders Reveal How Trump Is Already Secretly Helping Putin
Julia Davis
Mon 30 December 2024
Photo Illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/Getty
President-elect Donald Trump’s social media posts about annexing Greenland, Canada, and the Panama Canal startled America’s allies and delighted foreign foes. In Russia, the statements were interpreted to mean that Trump isn’t really opposed to foreign wars of conquest after all.
To them, Trump’s tirades revealed that—just like Russian President Vladimir Putin—Trump would be delighted to invade any country that couldn’t fight back. He would expect accolades and a lavish victory parade after seizing foreign territories, just like the fallout from Russia stealing Crimea in 2014.
Trump infamously described the annexation of Crimea as a “genius” and “savvy” move.
Putin tried to repeat the trick and take the rest of Ukraine in three days in 2022, and the Kremlin insiders believe Trump only disapproves of the war because it turned out to be lengthy and costly.
Russia’s premier propagandists and experts already believe that Trump can be persuaded to go along with Moscow’s wish list if Putin gets to influence him, tête-à-tête personally. They are vehemently opposed to the idea of negotiating with retired Lieutenant-General Keith Kellogg, Trump’s Ukraine envoy. The dream scenario that they envision would include legitimizing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and recognizing Moscow’s territorial demands.
In the meantime, Trump’s stated intentions towards Greenland, Canada, and Panama are being celebrated as implicit validation for Russia’s current and future land grabs. During Sunday’s broadcast of Vesti Nedeli (The Weekly News), host Dmitry Kiselyov devoted an entire segment to America’s planned expansion under Trump. He pointed out, “Trump isn’t joking. He is determined to expand American territorial possessions. Personally, I am convinced that he will succeed.” Kiselyov predicted, “Trump will grab strategically important parts of the world for America. It isn’t funny. What is funny is to see whether anyone in the Old World will try to sanction the United States in response to its territorial expansion. This is when we will find out how principled the lovers of sanctions truly are.”
Vladimir Putin Dmitry Kiselyov are close. / Mikhail Svetlov / Getty Images
He added, “Think about it. If Trump gets away with all of this, inspired by his success, he might look at the rest of the globe, focus on vulnerable spots, and keep going. Where will he stop? Doesn’t it mean that others can do the same?”
Last Thursday, pundits on the state TV show The Evening With Vladimir Solovyov spent most of the broadcast rejoicing about the way the world will change during Trump’s presidency. Host Vladimir Solovyov said, “Trump politely announced that the U.S. will be expanding its borders.”
State Duma member Andrey Lugovoy, notorious for his involvement in the deadly poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, noted, “It feels like we spent the last four years in Biden’s madhouse and now we’re gradually transitioning to Trump’s circus.” He speculated that the incoming president will resort to the madman theory as his political strategy, akin to the foreign policy of former U.S. President Richard Nixon. Lugovoy said that no one knows whether Trump is joking when he is making statements about Greenland, Panama, and Canada.
Host Vladimir Solovyov vehemently disagreed. He said, “These are awesome statements! No, he is not joking... of course he isn’t joking! Do you think I’m kidding when I say that Finland, Warsaw, the Baltics, Moldova, and Tallinn should come back home? Do you think I’m joking? No! They should all rejoin the Russian Empire. Followed by Alaska, by the way. Give it back.”
Solovyov added, “The way he is rationalizing it is tremendous. We should follow his example and quietly take everything back.” Echoing the statements of Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Putin’s top propagandist argued that Russia should now take more than the four Ukrainian regions it has already constitutionally decreed to be Russian.
Solovyov added, “The way he is rationalizing it is tremendous. We should follow his example and quietly take everything back.” Echoing the statements of Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Putin’s top propagandist argued that Russia should now take more than the four Ukrainian regions it has already constitutionally decreed to be Russian.
Vladimir Solovyov is one of Russia's most high-profile news hosts. / OLGA MALTSEVA / AFP via Getty Images
Lugovoy stated, “My friends, Trump’s insane statements show that there should not be any ceasefire. Why would we need a ceasefire when we’re confidently moving forward?”
Solovyov surmised, “I believe that what Trump is doing benefits us greatly. Trump is totally destroying any illusions that anyone might have still had about the summit of democracies, about respecting opinions of NATO allies. It’s like he’s saying, “Who are all of you? You’re all nobodies! I will talk to Putin and Xi Jinping... He is a great guy, an awesome guy!”
Professor Dmitry Evstafiev said, “Trump did something fantastic for Russia and for the whole world... He clearly answered a question, “Leadership or hegemony?” and chose hegemony. With his approach of geographical enlargement, he buried the entire collective West. There is no collective West, and it will never be united again.”
America expert Dmitry Drobnitsky emphasized, “Based on the team Trump is bringing along and who he is himself, it’s clear that he is certainly not a builder of a new world order. He is a destroyer. He will tear down the old world order.” Solovyov added, “By taking Canada, Trump is basically saying, “Russians, you can take the Baltics.””
Military expert Mikhail Khodaryonok noted, “After the statement of President-elect Donald Trump about Canada, Greenland, and Panama, in my opinion, we can now consider special military operations as the norm for resolving arguments between countries. The silence of European leaders clearly confirms this.”
Political scientist Dmitry Kulikov added the era of nation-states is over and that the world will return to the era of empires. He confidently said, “The new world is dawning.” Solovyov agreed, “This is the era of the strong.”
Former Trump adviser finally admits climate change exists to justify threatened Greenland takeover
Gustaf Kilander
Mon 30 December 2024
Former Trump adviser finally admits climate change exists to justify threatened Greenland takeover
A former national security adviser to Donald Trump has finally acknowledged the existence of climate change, unlike his former boss, to justify a takeover of Greenland, as threatened by the president-elect.
Robert O’Brien appeared on Sunday Morning Futures on Fox News, suggesting that the U.S. could limit its use of the Panama Canal “as the climate gets warmer” and turn instead to opening waterways in the Arctic along Greenland.
“Greenland is a highway from the Arctic all the way to North America, to the United States,” O’Brien said. “It’s strategically very important to the Arctic, which is going to be the critical battleground of the future because as the climate gets warmer, the Arctic is going to be a pathway that maybe cuts down on the usage of the Panama Canal.”
He added: “The Russians and the Chinese are all over the Arctic. Now the Danes ... own Greenland. And they’ve got an obligation to defend Greenland, and so President Trump said ‘If you don’t defend Greenland, we’ll buy it and we’ll defend it, but we’re not going to defend it for free and let you not develop Greenland and not extract the minerals and oil and resources of Greenland.’”
O’Brien went on to say that Denmark is “on the frontlines of the war against Russia and China.”
“They’re like the Baltic states, they’re like Poland because of their vast territory in Greenland,” he argued. “And so they’ve got to defend Greenland, and if they can’t defend it, we’re going to have to, and we’re not gonna do it for free.”
In the weeks after winning the election, Trump has suggested making Canada the 51st U.S. state and he has said he is prepared to take over the Panama Canal.
Trump has also threatened America’s closest neighbors with trade wars, and to take over Greenland, which has been part of the Kingdom of Denmark for 600 years. Trump claimed American ownership of Greenland was an “absolute necessity” for world “security” and “freedom.”. This threats come despite Trump’s vow to end foreign wars and despite that he made “peace through strength” a central part of his campaign.
But his threat is unlikely to lead to any major changes as leader after leader of the areas in question has staunchly rejected Trump’s advances. José Raúl Mulino, the president of Panama, shot back: “Every square meter of the Panama Canal and its adjacent zone belongs to Panama and will remain so.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Múte Egede said, “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom.
Taking back Panama Canal would require war: Former ambassador
Sarah Fortinsky
Mon 30 December 2024
Former U.S. Ambassador to Panama John Feeley on Sunday said it would take a war for the United States to take back the Panama Canal.
“To attempt to take it back today, I’d like to ask you, go find the MAGA constituency that’s going to support another foreign war because that is what it would take to get the canal back,” Feeley said during an interview on CNN.
President-elect Trump has broached the subject of the U.S. taking back the canal.
A week ago, Trump suggested to a conference of his supporters that the Panama Canal be returned to U.S. control, vowing swift action over the matter after he takes office in less than one month.
“It was given to Panama and to the people of Panama, but it has provisions. You got to treat us fairly, and they haven’t treated us fairly,” Trump said at Turning Point USA’s “American Fest.”
“If the principles, both moral and legal, of this magnanimous gesture of giving are not followed, then we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to the United States of America in full, quickly and without question,” Trump added.
When an audience member yelled, “Take it back,” Trump replied, “That’s a good idea.”
Feeley, who was ambassador under former President Obama and Trump, said the late President Carter was not alone in thinking it was wise to turn over the canal to Panama in the 1970s, noting even conservative leaders had similar instincts.
“Let’s not forget, Jimmy Carter wasn’t the only one who thought it was a good idea. No one less than Henry Kissinger in 1975 told then-President Nixon, if we don’t return this canal, we’re going to lose in every international forum, and we’re going to have riots all over Latin America,” Feeley said in an interview conducted shortly after Carter died on Sunday.
“Carter simply read correctly the decolonization moment, capitalized on it, and then … he paid the political price for that. But it was a principled move,” Feeley continued.
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