The Kremlin on Thursday said it is closely monitoring the “dramatic” comments made by President-elect Donald Trump over his desire to acquire Greenland amid his expansionist rhetoric to take over the Panama Canal and assume Canada as a “51st state.”
“The Arctic is a zone of our national interests, our strategic interests,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to a Reuters transcript. “We are interested in preserving the atmosphere of peace and stability in the Arctic zone.
“We are watching the rather dramatic development of the situation very closely, but so far, thank God, at the level of statements,” he added.
Trump, who earlier this week said he could not rule out using military or economic force to take the Danish territory as well as the Panama Canal, has drawn some rebuke from European leaders like German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who reminded the former, and soon-to-be president of the United States, that national sovereignty is a “fundamental principle of international law and a key part of what we call Western values.”
In a comment posted to X on Wednesday, Scholz, who has voiced “incomprehension” at Trump’s expansionist comments, said the principle of national sovereignty “applies to every country, whether in the East or the West.”
“In talks with our European partners, there is an uneasiness regarding recent statements from the U.S.,” he added, without mentioning which European leaders. “It is clear: We must stand together.”
Despite international concern over Trump’s comments, some European leaders appear to be toeing the line when it comes to the level of rebuke they have issued.
Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen responded to Trump’s comments on Tuesday by clarifying that Greenland is not for sale but added she was glad the arctic country was garnering international interest.
Similarly, in a Wednesday statement, Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egede, who supports independence from Denmark, urged calm and said, “Greenland looks forward to working with the incoming U.S. administration and other NATO allies to ensure security and stability in the Arctic region.”
The statement is a subtle reminder that Greenland, as a territory of Denmark which is a NATO member, is protected under the international alliance – though it is unclear if Greenland would remain so upon seeking independence or whether it, like Sweden and Finland have in recent years, would then need to apply for its own membership.
While Greenland remains under NATO protection, this means any attack on the Arctic nation – including by the U.S. – would trigger Article Five of the international treaty and prompt a military response from the other 31 NATO allies.
The Trump transition team did not respond to Fox News Digital’s questions over how Trump’s threats could violate that treaty and threaten military conflict with NATO allies.
Instead, a statement from Trump transition team spokesperson Karoline Leavitt was provided which said, “Every decision President Trump makes is in the best interest of the United States and the American people. That’s why President Trump has called attention to legitimate national security and economic concerns regarding Canada, Greenland, and Panama.”
However, Russian leaders have picked up on the apparently restrained response from some European leaders and on Thursday Peskov said, “Europe is reacting very timidly to this, it is clear that it’s scary to react to Trump’s words, so Europe is reacting very cautiously, modestly, quietly, almost in a whisper.
“After all, if they say that it is necessary to take into account the opinion of the people, then perhaps we should still remember the opinion of the people of the four new regions of the Russian Federation, and we should show the same respect for opinion of these people,” he said in reference to the four regions in Ukraine that Russia illegally annexed in 2022, not including Crimea, but which are not internationally recognized as a part of Russia.
NATO did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions.
