President Donald Trump remains committed to the United States taking control of Greenland, dismissing opposition from NATO allies and European leaders.
"We have to have it," Trump told reporters on the tarmac late Monday night at Palm Beach International Airport after attending the College Football Playoff national championship in Miami. "They have to have this done."
"Denmark, they are wonderful people, and I know the leaders, they are very good people, but they don't even go there."
Trump repeated his quip that Denmark's staked claim to home rule over the strategic Arctic landmass of Greenland does not stand because they landed a vessel there "500 years ago."
"Because the boat went there 500 years ago and then left, that doesn't give you title to the property," Trump added to reporters.
"We will be talking about it."
The strength of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization relies on Greenland and American military might, which can only be carried forward against Russian and Chinese threats if America takes over control of Greenland from Denmark, according to Trump.
"I've done more for NATO than anybody else," Trump told reporters. "I don't think you'd have NATO right now. I got them to go 5% [of their GDP toward defense spending] and pay as opposed to 2% and not pay."
"I've done more than any other American president for NATO. We will see how that goes. But Greenland is very important."
Trump also rejected notions that the Arctic Endurance military operation exercises are underway to guard against a U.S. invasion but said instead they are designed to defend against the threat of Russia in the region.
"They say they sent them not for me but to guard against Russia," Trump said during his roughly eight-minute media scrum before boarding Air Force One.
"But NATO has been warning Denmark for about 20 years now — longer than that, 25 years."
"They've been warning Denmark about the Russian threat, and it's not only Russia, it's also China," he added.
"So we will see what happens. But let's put it this way: It's going to be a very interesting Davos."
Trump began his briefing declaring, "I think I have a lot of messages for Davos."
Davos is the annual host of the World Economic Forum, and Trump has planned meeting with world leaders on myriad issues, including Greenland, Ukraine peace, the Board of Peace in Gaza, operations in Syria, and potential actions against Iran's reported killing of protesters.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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