Countries that could be in Trump’s sights after Venezuela
By BBC, January 6, 2026US President Donald Trump’s second term is being shaped by his foreign policy ambitions.
He’s followed through on threats against Venezuela by capturing its president and his wife from their heavily fortified Caracas compound in a dramatic overnight raid.
When describing the operation, Trump dusted off the 1823 Monroe Doctrine and its promise of US supremacy in the western hemisphere – rebranding it the “Donroe Doctrine”.
Here are some of the warnings he’s made against other nations in Washington’s orbit in recent days.
Greenland
The US already operates the Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, but Donald Trump has said Washington needs the entire island for national security, citing Russian and Chinese activity in the region.
Greenland, a Danish territory about 2,000 miles from the US, is rich in rare earth minerals and holds strategic importance in the North Atlantic and Arctic as melting ice opens new shipping routes. Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens Frederik Nielsen dismissed Trump’s remarks as a “fantasy,” insisting any dialogue must respect international law.
Any US attempt to seize Greenland would bring it into conflict with another Nato member, likely putting the alliance in peril.
Colombia
Just hours after the operation in Venezuela, Trump warned Colombian President Gustavo Petro to “watch his ass.
Venezuela’s neighbour to the west, Colombia, is home to substantial oil reserves and is a major producer of gold, silver, emeralds, platinum and coal.
It is also a key hub for the region’s drug trade – most notably cocaine.
Since the US began striking boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific in September, saying, without evidence, they were carrying drugs, Trump has been locked in a spiralling dispute with the country’s left-wing president.
The US imposed sanctions on Petro in October 2025, saying he was allowing cartels to “flourish.
Speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said Colombia was being “run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States.
“He’s not going to be doing it for very long, he said. Asked whether the US would carry out an operation targeting Colombia, Trump replied, “It sounds good to me.
Historically, Colombia has been a close ally in Washington’s war on drugs, receiving hundreds of millions of dollars annually in military assistance to counter cartels.
Iran
Iran is currently facing mass anti-government protests, and Trump warned overnight that the authorities there would be “hit very hard” if more protesters died.
“We’re watching it very closely. If they start killing people as they have in the past, I think they’re going to get hit very hard by the United States,” he told reporters on Air Force One.
Iran theoretically falls outside the scope defined in the “Monroe Doctrine, but Trump has nonetheless previously threatened the Iranian regime with further action, after striking its nuclear facilities last year.
Those strikes came after Israel launched a large-scale operation aimed at decapitating Iran’s capability to develop a nuclear weapon, which culminated in the 12-day Israel-Iran conflict.
In a Mar-a-Lago meeting between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, Iran was said to be top of the agenda. US media reported that Netanyahu raised the potential of new strikes against Iran in 2026.
Mexico
Trump’s rise to power in 2016 was defined by his calls to “Build the Wall” along the southern border with Mexico.
On his first day back in office in 2025, he signed an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.
He has frequently claimed Mexican authorities aren’t doing enough to stop the flow of drugs or illegal immigrants into the US.
Cuba
90 miles south of Florida, has faced US sanctions since the early 1960s and relied heavily on Venezuelan oil, reportedly receiving about 30% of its supply in exchange for medical services. With Nicolás Maduro gone, Havana could be vulnerable if oil supplies collapse.
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that US military action was unnecessary, claiming Cuba is “ready to fall” and has “no income” without Venezuelan oil. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose parents immigrated from Cuba, warned the Cuban government should be concerned, adding, “When the president speaks, you should take him seriously.”