In a major development, Donald Trump has asked senior commanders of the US military to prepare contingency plans ahead of a potential invasion of Greenland, reports the Daily Mail.
Trump has directed Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) to start exploring military options for the US, in its bid to take control of the Arctic territory, currently controlled by Denmark.
Daily Mail, citing diplomatic and defence sources familiar with the discussions, says Trump's move has already alarmed senior officials within US defence.
In fact, the proposal even met resistance from top US defence officials, including members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It appears select high-level officials are concerned about the legality of the move without any congressional authorisation.
The Daily Mail, based in the United Kingdom, even went on to claim that some top officials view Trump's proposal as unlawful and politically unviable.
“The generals think Trump's Greenland plan is crazy and illegal. So they are trying to deflect him with other major military operations. They say it's like dealing with a five-year-old," an unnamed diplomat told the Daily Mail.
Some of the military leaders have even attempted to redirect Trump's focus on to less contention issues. “They have tried to distract Trump by talking about less controversial measures, such as intercepting Russian 'ghost' ships … or launching a strike on Iran," another source told Daily Mail.
This comes against the backdrop of US military already carrying out an operation in Venezuela to capture Nicolas Maduro and gaining indirect control of the nation's vast oil reserves.
Trump has also recently voiced support for the ongoing Iranian protests, even offering them the support of the United States if things go awry, much to the frustration of the Khomeini-led regime.
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