Eric Trump trolled neighboring countries Canada, Greenland and Panama with a recent social media post about his father’s Amazon shopping cart, but some aren’t seeing it as a joke.
President-elect Donald Trump has made statements on US expansion ahead of his return to the White House next year, including focusing on both provinces and the territory.
In a post on X, Trump’s middle son shared an image that mimicked an online Amazon shopping cart.
The online shopping cart included: Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal.
The adjacent image he shared was the 78-year-old smiling at the shopping cart on his phone.
The younger Trump captioned his post with “We’ll be right back!!!”
But while the president-elect sometimes harasses other foreign leaders with his talk of U.S. expansion, some of his recent statements appear to be serious, including threats against Greenland and Panama.
Eric Trump shares post of what appears to be an Amazon cart with Canada, Greenland and the Panama Canal in it as his father, the president-elect, declares he wants to expand US control
Trump first turned his ire on Canada and Mexico last month when he accused the neighbors of unfair trade with the US and threatened that they should do more to tackle the border.
At the time, he threatened both countries with 25 percent tariffs on all U.S. imports if he returns to power if they don’t take action.
It’s a move that economists warned would raise costs for U.S. consumers and could be economically devastating for all three countries.
In response, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau traveled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in Florida to meet the president-elect in person, where Trump reportedly suggested Canada could become a U.S. state.
Since then, the 78-year-old has teased Trudeau with social media posts, including one of him looking at Canada. He also called the Canadian leader “governor” and called for Canada to be the 51st state.
A few days ago, he repeated a suggestion in a Truth Social post, even derisively referring to it as the “Great State of Canada.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justice Trudeau in West Palm Beach, FL on November 29 to meet with Trump after the President-elect threatened tariffs. Trump has since called Trudeau a “governor” and Canada a “state”
But Trump has gone even further with his talk of expansion in recent days.
The president-elect has also set his sights on the Panama Canal and Greenland with a series of social media posts that are not joking but making direct demands for U.S. control.
In a post announcing his choice for US ambassador to Denmark, Trump revived his interest in buying Greenland.
“For purposes of national security and freedom throughout the world, the United States of America believes that ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Trump, 78, made the stark statement Sunday evening in his announcement about his nominee for U.S. ambassador to Denmark that the U.S. believes “ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.”
During his first term, Trump first showed interest in buying Greenland, an autonomous region of Denmark.
While the president-elect has repeatedly floated the idea, he has not gone into detail about how the U.S. would make the purchase with the people there or pay for it.
Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede responded to Trump’s post, stating that the area is “not for sale.”
At the same time, Trump has threatened the country of Panama in recent weeks with a demand that the US take control of the Panama Canal.
Over the weekend, the president-elect wrote that the Central America Canal, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, “is considered a VITAL national asset for the United States because of its critical role to the U.S. economy and national security .’
He vowed that the US would never let it fall into the wrong hands, writing “we will demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us.”
Trump reiterated his demands over the canal and criticism of the fees to use it on Sunday to a group of supporters during a speech in Phoenix, Arizona.
But Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino rejected Trump, declaring that “every square meter of the Panama Canal belongs to Panama.”
In a message released on Sunday afternoon by Panamanian President Mulino (pictured December 19, 2024), the country’s leader said Panama’s independence was non-negotiable and that China had no influence on the canal’s governance.
Mulino said in his statement, which was released on X: ‘Every square meter of the Panama Canal and the surrounding area belongs to Panama and will continue to belong (to Panama)’
He added that the country’s sovereignty and independence are “non-negotiable.”
The Panama Canal was built by the US in the early 20th century, but transferred control to Panama in 1999 under a treaty signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977.
Trump responded to the Panamanian president’s letter: “We’ll see about that!”
He and his allies have not indicated how the US would take control without cooperation.