President Trump isn’t denying the possibility of further American expansion, intervention or annexation efforts in the Western Hemisphere after the military’s success in plucking former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from Caracas over the weekend to face drug trafficking charges in the U.S.
In the past, he’s threatened to annex Greenland and Canada and predicted the governments in Cuba and Colombia would fall. Now, Mr. Trump is making similar comments again and raising new questions about what he plans to do next.
Mr. Trump said Saturday that under his administration, “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again” — dubbing his approach the “Don-roe Doctrine,” a spin on the 19th century foreign policy concept.
It’s not clear whether the president will act on his threats against other countries.
Here’s the latest on countries and territories that have been the subject of interventionist comments by the president:
Greenland
Mr. Trump has long coveted Greenland and has said it’s necessary for U.S. national security, a point he made again Sunday.
“We need Greenland from a national security situation. It’s so strategic. Right now, Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” he said. “We need Greenland, from the standpoint of national security.”
“Denmark is not going to be able to do it, I can tell you,” Mr. Trump continued. “To boost up security in Greenland, they added one more dogsled.”
The president also named Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry to serve as special envoy to Greenland last month to represent U.S. interests on the island, which is an autonomous territory of Denmark. Landry said in a social media post addressed to Mr. Trump, “It’s an honor to serve you in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the U.S.”
In March, Vice President JD Vance visited Greenland and told a reporter while he was there that “what we think is going to happen is that the Greenlanders are going to choose through self-determination to become independent of Denmark, and then we’re going to have conversations with the people of Greenland from there.”
Leaders of both Denmark and Greenland have repeatedly stated that the huge Arctic island isn’t for sale and that it will decide its future itself.
A post on Saturday by Katie Miller, the wife of top White House aide Stephen Miller, showed Greenland covered in an American flag accompanied by the comment “Soon,” which prompted some to wonder if its annexation is on the horizon.
Asked by CNN on Monday if he could rule out that the U.S. is going to try to take Greenland by force, Stephen Miller said, “There’s no need to even think or talk about this in the context that you’re asking — of a military operation. Nobody’s going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland.”
Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One over the weekend that while nothing is imminent, “we’ll worry about Greenland in about two months. Let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days.”
Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens Frederik Nielsen chided Mr. Trump in a social media post, calling suggestions of annexation “fantasies” and writing: “That’s enough now.”
On Tuesday, the leaders of Europe issued a statement saying “security in the Arctic must therefore be achieved collectively, in conjunction with NATO allies including the United States, by upholding the principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders. These are universal principles, and we will not stop defending them.”
Iran
Escalating protests over the desperate economic conditions in Iran have been taking place for over a week, and there have been reports that dozens of people have been killed. In response, hours before the Venezuela operation began, Mr. Trump posted on social media that if Iran “violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue.” He said the U.S. is “locked and loaded.”
The president said Sunday of the demonstrations in Iran, “We’re watching it very closely. If they start killing people like they have in the past, I think they’re going to get hit very hard by the United States.”
In June, the U.S. carried out airstrikes against Iran’s major nuclear facilities, Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan, in an effort to destroy its nuclear enrichment capacity.
Cuba
On the way back to Washington Sunday, Mr. Trump told reporters, “Cuba looks like it’s ready to fall,” adding that he didn’t know “if they’re going to hold out.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s remarks Saturday indicated Cuba’s leaders should be worried: “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned at least a little bit.” A day later, on NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” he said of Cuba, “they’re in a lot of trouble.”
Though he didn’t detail any plans for Cuba or its leaders, Rubio said, “I don’t think it’s any mystery that we are not big fans of the Cuban regime, who, by the way, are the ones that were propping up Maduro.”
Rubio highlighted the close ties between Venezuela and Cuba, noting that Maduro had relied on Cuban bodyguards for protection and said they were in charge of the Venezuelan government’s “internal intelligence.” The Cuban government said 32 Cubans were killed during the military operation to capture Maduro.
For now, Mr. Trump seems content to see how things play out on the island.
“I don’t think we need any action” in Cuba, he said, pointing out that Cuba “now has no income — they got all of their income from Venezuela, from the Venezuelan oil. They’re not getting any of it. And Cuba literally is ready to fall.”
In the past year, Cuba’s oil imports from Venezuela fell by 15%, to 27,400 barrels per day, according to Reuters, which also said that Cuba’s supply from Mexico over the same period, from January to October, had dropped by 73%, to just 5,000 bpd.
Colombia
The president appears to have less patience for Colombian President Gustavo Petro, whom he has accused of illegal drug production and trafficking.
“Colombia is very sick, too, run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States, and he’s not going to be doing it very long, let me tell you,” Mr. Trump told reporters Saturday. Asked whether he was threatening to undertake a military operation in Colombia, the president replied, “It sounds good to me. You know what … they kill a lot of people.”
The Trump administration has claimed that cocaine production has spiked during Petro’s presidency, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced sanctions on Petro in October because he “has allowed drug cartels to flourish and refused to stop this activity.”
Petro has accused the U.S. of violating international law with its attacks on alleged drug boats, which have now killed at least 115 people, and he suggested that some innocent civilians may have been killed in the strikes. The U.S. denies that any innocent civilians have been killed in any of the boat strikes.
Petro — who once belonged to a guerilla group — warned Mr. Trump against taking action in his country, writing on X that he “swore never to touch a weapon again,” but “for the homeland I would take up arms that I don’t want.”
Canada
While Mr. Trump has in the past talked about making Canada the “51st state,” he has not brought it up again since the Venezuela operation.
But Mr. Trump has imposed punishing tariffs against Canada, raising the tariffs to 35% in August, though a large share of goods are exempt because they’re covered by the 2020 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement.
In October, Mr. Trump threatened to end trade negotiations with Canada after an anti-tariff ad using Ronald Reagan’s voice ran in Ontario. Ontario Premier Doug Ford pulled the ad, saying “our intention was always to initiate a conversation about the kind of economy that Americans want to build and the impact of tariffs on workers and businesses.”
Panama Canal
Mr. Trump argued earlier in his term that the U.S. should regain control over the strategic Panama Canal — drawing flak from Panama’s government. The U.S. oversaw the canal’s construction in the early 20th century and controlled it for decades, but began handing the canal and surrounding land back over to Panama in 1979.
He claimed in March that he was “reclaiming the Panama Canal,” referring to a deal by a U.S.-led consortium to buy a controlling stake in the company that operates ports near the canal. Panama’s president accused Mr. Trump of “lying again.”
What is the Monroe Doctrine?
In 1823, America’s fifth president, James Monroe, outlined before Congress the U.S.’ policy toward its neighbors in the Western Hemisphere. It was initially intended to ward off European colonialism, but the Monroe administration also wanted to increase the U.S.’ influence and trading alliances.
During the Cold War, the U.S. cited the Monroe Doctrine to be used as a defense against the expansion of communism in Latin America.
The phrase “Don-roe Doctrine” first appeared on the cover of the New York Post last year.
