Newsman: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot doesn’t think the U.S. president-elect would actually try to capture the Arctic island by force
“But have we entered a period of time when it is survival of the fittest? Then my answer is yes,” said French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot.
The French and German governments pushed back against Donald Trump’s refusal to rule out military force to gain control of Greenland and the Panama Canal.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz criticized what he called an American “lack of understanding” of the principle of the inviolability of borders “with regard to recent statements of the USA.”
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot deployed a mix of the two approaches — saying on French radio that it is “out of the question that the European Union would let other countries … attack its sovereign borders, whoever they are,” but adding that he did not believe Trump would actually invade Greenland.
“If you’re asking me whether I think the United States will invade Greenland, my answer is no. But have we entered into a period of time when it is survival of the fittest? Then my answer is yes,” Barrot said.
Europeans have had responses to Trump’s incendiary Tuesday press conference, with some leaders downplaying his statement on Greenland as unserious and others rebuking the president-elect more robustly.
Trump on Tuesday did not dismiss the possibility that the U.S. could use military force to acquire the Arctic island or the Panama Canal.
Asked if he would rule out economic or military coercion to gain control of Greenland and the Central American canal, Trump said: “I’m not gonna commit to that. No. It might be that you’ll have to do something.”
Scholz invoked the support that the U.S. and its allies have given to Ukraine in defending itself from Russia’s invasion, “to protect the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine and also the principle of the inviolability of borders.”
“This is a fundamental principle of international law and a core component of what we call ‘Western values,’” he said in a speech at the chancellery. “This cannot and must not be shaken.”
“The principle of the inviolability of borders applies to every country, regardless of whether it lies to the east or west of us, and every state must abide by it, regardless of whether it is a small country or a very powerful state.”
