Trump wants 'immediate negotiations' to acquire Greenland
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This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Ankur Desai at 16GMT. On Wednesday, the 21st of January, these are our main stories. Donald Trump has told the World Economic Forum he wants immediate negotiations to acquire Greenland for the United States, but he won't take it by force.
People thought I would use force. I don't have to use force. I don't want to use force. I won't use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland.
We'll have more from Davos, where the US president has been addressing world leaders. Also, the BBC has seen photos of hundreds of victims of the bloody suppression of protests in Iran that were shown to relatives trying to identify the dead.
Also coming up in this podcast...
The sounds outside court are supporters of a man who assassinated the former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe after being sentenced to life in prison. We also explain a new report from the United Nations, which has declared what it describes as the dawn of an era of global water bankruptcy. And the authorities in the Pakistani city of Lahore have launched a drive to install safety rods on motorbikes to protect riders from potentially deadly kite strings ahead of a festival. We start in the alpine town of Davos. In normal times, a small and quiet, somewhat picturesque upmarket Swiss ski resort. But these are anything but normal times. It's currently home to the World Economic Forum, a gathering of the global elite who are waiting today to hear from President Trump.
It's fair to say European leaders were braced for impact, waiting to hear what the US president would say about plans to impose tariffs on those countries that support Denmark's sovereignty of Greenland. But instead, President Trump, in a wide-ranging speech lasting for around an hour and a half, said he wanted immediate negotiations to acquire Greenland for the United States, although he wouldn't take it by force.
People thought I would use force. I don't have to use force. I don't want to use force. I won't use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland where we already had it as a trustee, but respectfully returned it back to Denmark not long ago after we defeated the Germans, the Japanese, the Italians, and others in World War II. We gave it back to them. We were a powerful force then, but we are a much more powerful force now.
He praised the people and leaders of Denmark, which has sovereignty over the Arctic island, but said only the U.S. could defend it.
We need it for strategic national security and international security. This enormous, unsecured island is actually part of North America on the northern frontier of the Western Hemisphere. That's our territory. It is therefore a core national security interest of the United States of America. And in fact, It's been our policy for hundreds of years to prevent outside threats from entering our hemisphere, and we've done it very successfully. We've never been stronger than we are now.
Mr Trump said that US ownership of Greenland was a small ask over a piece of ice, and it would be good for NATO, but then went on to attack fellow NATO members for not pulling their weight and mocked the French and Canadian leaders directly. Christian Fraser has been speaking to our Europe correspondent, Nick Beek. I think undoubtedly there'll be relief that President Trump said he wouldn't use military force to take Greenland, as you say in itself, an extraordinary statement. But of course, it doesn't remove the problem, the fact that he wants it. And I think for many Europeans listening to this, yes, they would have heard him talk about his fondness for Scotland and Germany and his proud European roots.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–6:04
2
What does Trump want regarding Greenland at the World Economic Forum?
6:04–7:58
3
How are victims of protests in Iran being identified?
7:58–9:45
4
What was the outcome of the Shinzo Abe assassination trial?
9:45–11:03
5
What safety measures are being introduced for kite flying in Pakistan?
11:03–27:13
Speakers
7 identifiedMore from Global News Podcast
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