U.S. Rep. Palmer: 'We don't want to take over Greenland' — But 'we can't let China come in and take it'
On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) weighed in on President Donald Trump's plan to annex the Danish autonomous territory of Greenland, a move that has drawn protests and pushback.
According to Palmer, the United States doesn't "want to take over Greenland." He said on FM Talk 106.5's "The Jeff Poor Show" that the move was more about preventing China from coming in and taking control of the territory.
"I really don't think we want to take over Greenland, but at the same time, we can't let China come in and take it. And they will. They will buy their way into it. That's what theyve done in South America."
"There's no way Denmark can hold off China," he added. "China's not going to invade - to just resist their will. So, that's what we're trying to do is protect our own region from further encouragement by the Chinese and the Russians, for that matter. Russia does have a legitimate claim because they are an Arctic nation."
"They're buying their way in," Palmer continued. "They're already up near the Arctic Circle, and the Arctic Ocean is a fairly, relatively shallow ocean compared to the other major oceans. But they're up there exploring and probing, and we don't know what all is in Greenland, but we do know that we're in a national security emergency in regard to a supply chain of refined rare earth elements."