President-elect Donald Trump talked about his interest in ensuring the security of the United States during a long press conference on Tuesday control over Greenland and the Panama Canaland stated that he does not rule out the use of military force.
Below, see where these two places are and why Trump might want the US to control them.
Where is Greenland and why does Trump want to control it?
Greenland is located in northeastern Canada and is largely covered by the Greenland Ice Sheet. The world's largest island, home to only about 60,000 people, it is a semi-autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark with its own elected government.
Its location between the US, Russia and Europe makes it extremely strategic for both economic and defense purposes – especially as the sea ice melts opened new sea routes through the Arctic.
It is also home to the northernmost US military base.
“We need Greenland for national security purposes,” Trump said Tuesday. “I'm talking about protecting the free world. You look—you don't even need binoculars—you look out. You have Chinese ships everywhere. Russian ships are everywhere. We will not allow this to happen.”
European University in St. Petersburg
Greenland also has oil, natural gas and rare mineral resources, some of which are used in products including military equipment and electric vehicles, which are currently mostly sourced from Russia and China.
What is the Panama Canal and why does Trump need it?
About 40% of US container shipping now passes through the Panama Canal, according to the trade publication CargoNOW. The channel serves as a shortcut between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, as well as the Atlantic Ocean.
Trump said the United States needed the Panama Canal for “economic security,” falsely claiming it was “run by China.”
“The Panama Canal is vital to our country. It is ruled by China. China! And we gave the Panama Canal to Panama. We didn't give it to China and they abused it. They abused this gift. It should never have been done,” Trump said.
Panamanian President José Raúl Molina disputed this.
“There is absolutely no Chinese interference or involvement in anything related to the Panama Canal,” he said in late December.
Elmurad Usubaliyev/Anadolu Agency/Getty
Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martinez-Acha said on Tuesday that his government had not spoken formally with Trump or his team about the canal recently, but he reiterated the country's president's previous comments that the canal would remain under Panamanian control.
“The sovereignty of our channel is non-negotiable and is part of our history of struggle and irreversible conquest,” Martinez-Acha said.
History of Greenland
The Kingdom of Denmark began colonizing Greenland in the early 18th century, hundreds of years after Vikings from that faraway country first arrived to settle. It was not until after World War II that the US established a presence on the island, when the then Danish ambassador to the US, Henrik Kaufman, refused to surrender to the power of Denmark's Nazi occupiers.
Denmark was liberated from Nazi occupation in 1945, but the US did not abandon its Pitufik military base, which to this day remains the northernmost US military base.
History of the Panama Canal
The Panama Canal was built by the USA between 1904 and 1914. It serves as a shortcut between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean, dramatically reducing shipping routes from Asia to ports in the eastern US
It was run by the US government for the first decades, which caused tensions with Panama.
In the 1970s, the United States and Panama signed a treaty of permanent neutrality of the canal. The US committed to relinquish control of the canal and did so entirely in 1999. The canal is now under the control of the Panama Canal Authority.