Steve Bannon reveals why Canada is the ‘next Ukraine’ as he details Trump’s real motivations behind taking Greenland and his ‘Donroe Doctrine’
President Donald Trump is preparing to counter Chinese influence in Canada as his ‘Donroe Doctrine’ for the Western Hemisphere expands beyond Latin America, former campaign architect Steve Bannon told the Daily Mail.
‘The next big thing will be Canada. Bannon, the former White House chief strategist, said Canada is the next Ukraine because they can’t defend their northern arctic border and China will come in and take a bite. ‘They can’t defend this and Trump will come down hard on Canada.’
During his first term, Trump established an Arctic working group that deepened his understanding of Greenland’s geostrategic importance and highlighted concerns about Canada’s Arctic vulnerabilities.
The President has long been concerned about China’s actions in the Arctic after China described itself as a ‘near-polar state’ in 2018, former White House officials told the Daily Mail.
Canada is also building closer ties with China, which threatens to disrupt existing relations with the United States.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to China for the first time in nearly a decade caused concern for Americans, and he described China as a ‘strategic partner’ with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
‘I believe the progress and partnership we have made prepares us well for the new world order,’ Carney said.
Carney also sided with Denmark and its NATO allies over President Trump’s interest in staying away from Greenland, suggesting to reporters that President Xi has ‘found a great deal of consensus’ on American interests on the island.
President Donald Trump is keeping a close eye on Canada for any Chinese attack on the Arctic
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in China for the first time in nearly a decade
Carney’s comments certainly raised concerns in the Trump administration, as the President remains skeptical of foreign activities in the Western hemisphere.
The president has signaled that his nascent desire to acquire Greenland has more to do with keeping Russia and China out of the strategically important region.
The world is taking Trump’s appreciation of the Monroe Doctrine seriously after the unprecedented operation in Venezuela resulted in the capture and detention of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.
‘The Monroe Doctrine is a big deal, but we are far, far behind it. “They call it the Donroe doctrine now,” the president told reporters at a press conference after the mission was completed.
The 200-year-old Monroe doctrine was articulated by President James Monroe, as well as Secretary of War John C. Calhoun and Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, who worked to reaffirm America’s position in the Western hemisphere.
‘It was very important, but we forgot. “We are not forgetting this anymore,” Trump told reporters after his mission in Venezuela. ‘Under our new national security strategy, American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never again be questioned.’
The ‘Donroe Doctrine’ extends this ideal to jealously defend the entire Western hemisphere against the encroaching influence of Russia and China.
Trump even voiced the ‘Trump Corollaries’ of the Monroe Doctrine during the press conference, putting himself in the same category as Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote his own corollary in 1905 that emphasized the importance of the United States maintaining order in the Western hemisphere.
Although some foreign policy experts were surprised to see the president reference the historical origins of his vision, others recognized the rhetoric outlined in the White House National Security Strategy released in November.
The 33-page document details that ‘Trump’s outcome’ was a prudent decision to deny ‘the ability of non-hemispheric rivals to position force or other threatening capabilities in the same hemisphere as the United States.’
The text outlines the president’s expectation that leaders in the Western hemisphere consider the United States as their first partner, but subtly states that ‘we will discourage collaboration with others (by a variety of means)’.
The Venezuelan mission gave the world a first look at the ‘various means’ that the United States was prepared to employ to achieve a more favorable environment for American interests.
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Is American power in the Western Hemisphere protecting us, or is it at risk of a dangerous escalation?
President Donald Trump is trying to persuade American oil companies to return to Venezuela
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping after meeting at Gimhae International Airport in Busan in October
China has also invested heavily in Latin America, including energy companies in Brazil and Chile. Under Donald Trump’s administration, the United States continues to restrict oil exports from Venezuela, much of which is purchased by China.
While Rosevelt famously declared that he would ‘walk softly and carry a big stick’, Trump takes almost the opposite approach.
‘Trump is more like floating like a butterfly, stinging like a bee,’ said Clint Brown, a Harpoon Ventures investor and former chairman of the Senate Steering Committee. ‘You will see me and when you come across me I will sting you very quickly.’
Experts said the document reflects the work of Michael Anton, the State Department’s former director of policy planning staff, and Arthur Milikh, the State Department’s principal deputy director, as well as White House senior policy adviser Kara Frederick.
Others appreciated the rhetoric from White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.
James Wallner, Senior Fellow at the American Foundation for Innovation, said, ‘Miller was with the president from the very beginning; “I think this is very important in terms of loyalty and closeness,” he said.
Wallner, the former legislative director for Senator Jeff Sessions, worked with Stephen Miller on Capitol Hill.
Miller explained that although he has long-held foreign policy views, some of Trump’s positions are unique and have shaped his entire administration.
Trump adopted Reagan’s slogan of ‘Peace Through Strength’ and used other means to realize his Western Hemisphere vision by aggressively using the rapid and lethal power of the American military.
‘Trump is very much his own president, but also a life force with his own goals,’ Wallner said.
Trump’s vision for the Western Hemisphere has earned him widespread praise from Senate Republicans, who welcome his focus on American interests in foreign policy.
“With the ‘Donroe Doctrine,’ President Trump is reviving a principle that has been a foundation of America’s foreign policy for nearly all of our history except the last 30 years: The United States has both the right and the duty to secure our own hemisphere,” Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt told the Daily Mail. ‘Under President Trump, America acts as if it were a superpower; ‘He no longer apologizes for implementing policies that will make our country safer, stronger and more prosperous.’
