The Greek Courier
In Trump's hostile takeover of the World, Greenland is next on the agenda because he asserts that it is absolutely necessary for the United States. But the last few days, he focused on exerting control over Venezuela, attempting to dismantle the established Bolivarian regime led by acting President Delcy Rodríguez—all in an effort to gain access to the nation’s oil reserves. As this approach mainly serves to rally his base while he seeks to strengthen his position ahead of the midterm elections, he disregards the significant impact his actions have on international law and order.
Taking care of business the Trump way
On Sunday, January 4, 2026, during a telephone interview with The Atlantic magazine, the U.S. President issued a stern warning to Venezuela's Vice President and acting President Rodríguez, cautioning that she would "pay a very heavy price" if she did not cooperate with Washington. As reported, Trump threatened her publicly, "If she doesn't do the right thing, she will pay a very heavy price, likely even more severe than Maduro’s," referring to the recently abducted former President Nicolás Maduro, who was taken along with his wife from Caracas by American forces and is currently incarcerated in a U.S. prison in Brooklyn.
What is heavier than abduction to a foreign jail, anybody?
So intimidation is the name of his game. But, while this is a political smoke screen, the truth is more complicated. Trump is certain, according to The Guardian, that Rodriguez will cooperate and, moreover, that she will be a potential business partner. As a senior American official told the New York Times:
“I’m not claiming that she’s the permanent solution to the country’s problems, but she’s certainly someone we think we can work at a much more professional level than we were able to do with [Maduro].”
Looks like we got a winner.
According to the NYT, "The English-speaking technocrat impressed Trump’s team with her management of Venezuela’s oil industry and intermediaries convinced the administration that she would protect and champion future American energy investments in the country". And as the Guardian reports, "for Trump, that was enough to ditch an alternative candidate to replace Maduro: María Corina Machado." I guess Machado should never have won the Peace Nobel Prize. Trump has a camel's memory and does not forget.
If all this sounds too hard to grasp, it is because it is also too hard to swallow. Hostile takeovers of countries to control and exploit their resources are not tolerated by international law. As NYT's political commentator Nickolas Kristoff, and a fervent enemy of Maduro, wrote today, "President Trump’s operation to remove Maduro appears to be illegal, and it’s not at all clear that the regime itself will be toppled or that life will improve for ordinary Venezuelans".
Furthermore, as Kristoff emphasizes,
"Barging into countries to arrest a foe, reportedly killing at least 40 people in the process, is not a precedent we want others to follow. I’m in Taiwan as I write this, and some are wondering if President Xi Jinping of China will get ideas. Frankly, I doubt that: I believe that what constrains Xi is military calculus, not concern for the rule of law. But it’s still true that the world works better when the United States promotes the “rules-based international order” rather than the law of the jungle that Thucydides recounted 2,500 years ago: “The strong do what they can, and the weak suffer what they must.”
Well said.
But this is also Trump's motto, and everyone who knows him in the business community knows it is true. That's what he counts on. Intimidation. For example, in the interview with Atlantic, he defended the notion of regime change: "You know, reconstruction there and regime change, whatever you want to call it, is better than what's there now. It can't get any worse," he asserted. He doesn't care about international law. He defies it as a good old British King or a Roman Emperor, better yet, as a clever CEO in an oil company.
Greenland is next
Additionally, in the same interview, Trump hinted that Venezuela may not be the last country where U.S. intervention could occur. "We absolutely need Greenland," he stated, referring to the island that belongs to Denmark, while noting that it is "surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships."
Wow!
In the blink of an eye, Denmark’s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, firmly advised Trump to "stop the threats" concerning the potential annexation of Greenland. She emphasized that "it makes absolutely no sense to talk about the need for the United States to take over Greenland," asserting, "The US has no right to annex any of the three nations in the Danish kingdom.”
As the BBC reported, her comments addressed a provocative tweet, a follow-up to Trump's comments, by Katie Miller, wife of Trump's ultra-conservative aide Stephen Miller, which featured a map of Greenland adorned in American flag colors with the caption "SOON."
Frederiksen made her statement on the Danish government’s website, addressing the US "very directly." She pointed out that Denmark—and thus Greenland—are members of NATO, covered under the alliance’s security guarantees. She also noted that Denmark already has a defense agreement with the US, granting access to Greenland and underscoring Denmark's increased investments in Arctic security.
"I would therefore strongly urge the United States to stop the threats against a historically close ally," she stated, emphasizing, "against another country and another people who have very clearly said that they are not for sale."
In response to Miller's post, the Danish ambassador to the US offered a "friendly reminder" that the two nations are allies, expressing Denmark's expectation for respect regarding its territorial integrity.
The Trump administration's recent decision to appoint a special envoy to Greenland has also sparked discontent in Denmark. Although Greenland has enjoyed extensive self-governance since 1979, with defense and foreign affairs still overseen by Denmark, most Greenlanders express a preference for eventual independence rather than joining the US, as indicated by public opinion polls.
Trump doesn't give a damn. But that is his biggest flaw.
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