Trump says he wasn’t ‘trolling’ about acquiring Greenland, Canada as 51st state

President Donald Trump isn’t “trolling” when it comes to efforts to acquire Greenland and make Canada the 51st state. 

Trump has discussed acquiring Greenland, Canada and Panama for months — and has regularly referred to Canada as the 51st U.S. state. Despite skepticism from some, Trump said in an interview with Tine magazine published Friday that he is serious about these proposals. 

When asked by Time’s Eric Cortellessa whether Trump was “trolling a bit” in suggesting Canada join the U.S., Trump replied, “Actually, no, I’m not.”

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Cortellessa then asked whether Trump intended to “grow the American empire,” prompting Trump to double down on the significance of acquiring these key pieces of territory. 

“Well, it depends as an empire, it wasn’t, these are not things that we had before, so I’d view it a little bit differently if we had the right opportunity,” Trump said. “Yeah, I think Greenland would be very well off if they I think it’s important for us for national security and even international security.”

Trump also claimed that the U.S. is “losing” money supporting Canada, and that the only solution on the table is for it to become a state. 

“We’re taking care of their military,” Trump said. “We’re taking care of every aspect of their lives, and we don’t need them to make cars for us. In fact, we don’t want them to make cars for us. We want to make our own cars. We don’t need their lumber. We don’t need their energy. We don’t need anything from Canada. And I say the only way this thing really works is for Canada to become a state.”

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The Time piece was published a day after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters that Trump routinely discusses Canada becoming a state, claiming that Trump brings it up “all the time.” Carney has previously shut down any notions that Canada will become a U.S. state. 

Meanwhile, Trump has emphasized that Greenland is key for national security purposes. While the Danish territory has said it is seeking independence from Copenhagen but isn’t inclined to join the U.S., Trump has voiced a strong desire to secure Greenland amid increase Russian and Chinese presence in the Arctic.

“If you look at Greenland right now, if you look at the waterways, you have Chinese and Russian ships all over the place, and we’re not going to be able to do that,” Trump told reporters in March. “We’re not relying on Denmark or anybody to take care of that situation. And we’re not talking about peace for the United States, we’re talking about world peace, we’re talking about international security.”