Trump and Greenland Acquisition
As of Wednesday, Jan. 14, President Donald Trump announced to the public that he wants to acquire Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark in the Arctic. Greenland has 56,000 residents, and about 81% of its land is under ice. Trump has stated that he wants Greenland’s natural resources, and he wants the location for “national security.”
On Thursday, Jan. 15, Trump met with officials from Denmark and Greenland. Before the Wednesday meeting with officials, Denmark announced that it would increase its military occupancy, and start bringing in European troops, including from Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. The movement of the troops was intended to signal to Trump that the U.S. takeover of Greenland was not necessary and that NATO could secure the Arctic region.
“Greenland is not for sale,” Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said on Jan. 15. “Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States… Greenland does not want to be part of the United States.”
In Greenland’s capital of Nuuk, thousands of protestors led by the Prime Minister of Greenland carried flags and banners, chanting Greenland’s name in Greenlandic: “Kalaallit Nunaat.” In Copenhagen, Denmark, an estimated 20,000 protestors marched to the U.S. embassy holding up signs with slogans like “Greenland is not for sale.”
As of Saturday, Jan. 17, Trump said that he would charge a 10% import tax on goods, starting in February, from eight different European countries because of their opposition to U.S. control of Greenland.
Anti-Government Protests in Iran
Anti-government protests started in late December, with people in Tehran protesting against inflation and the decreasing value of the currency, with the protests eventually making their way across the country. Due to the protests, authorities shut down the Internet in Iran on the evening of Jan. 8, as security has tried to stop the protests.
Around 22,000 people have been arrested since the protests began. Several thousand people are dead, with estimates around 12,000 people, and perhaps as high as 20,000.
On Tuesday, Jan. 13, Trump had told Iranians to keep protesting and that “help is on its way,” with Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling Trump a criminal for the casualties and the accusations against the nation of Iran.
Chicago Bears’ Tremendous Comeback
On Jan. 10, the Chicago Bears won 31-27 over the Green Bay Packers in the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The Bears started down 18 points in the first half and were down 11 points with less than five minutes to go, making a tremendous comeback.
In the fourth quarter, quarterback Caleb Williams led two miraculous drives, with the second drive ending in a 25-yard touchdown to wide receiver DJ Moore with one minute and 43 seconds to go.
“[Williams] was built for these moments,” Bears Coach Ben Johnson said. “He plays his best when we need him to. And so, there’s really not a whole lot that needs to be said. He just needs to be him.”
The Packers’ 21-3 first-half lead became a 31-27 loss. On Jan. 18, however, the Bears played against the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round in Chicago, losing 17-20, proving to be a difficult defeat.
