John Bolton, President-elect Trump's former national security adviser, said Trump’s unwillingness to rule out military force on Greenland could bolster the positions of China’s Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin as they seek to justify their expansionist visions. In an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins Tuesday night, Bolton said he’s concerned that Trump’s language could “have a further ramification, based on what Trump said today about declining to rule out the use of force.” “That's exactly the same position Xi Jinping has on Taiwan. So I could easily imagine Xi Jinping saying, ‘Look, I perfectly well understand Greenland's close to the United States. Taiwan's close to us. Trump won't rule out the use of force on Greenland. Exactly our position. We won't rule it out on Taiwan.’” Bolton said Putin, who directed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago, could point to Trump's rhetoric as justifying his actions. “Or Vladimir Putin could say, 'Look, I certainly understand that. Ukraine is critical to our national security. We are using force. And, you know, frankly, if the United States invaded Greenland—which, by the way, has US troops stationed there today— I, Vladimir Putin, wouldn't oppose that.’” “It shows Trump, again, not understanding the broader context that his remarks are made in, and the harmful consequences that this is having all across NATO right now,” Bolton said. Trump was questioned during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago Tuesday about his recently targeting the Panama Canal as well as Greenland for possible American expansion, and if he would rule out using the military in those efforts. “I’m not going to commit to that. It might be that you have to do something,” Trump said. Bolton said he thinks “it’s not irrational” to pursue a closer relationship with Greenland, but he suggested that Trump’s approach is not strategically sound, as it is pushing leaders of Greenland and Denmark, which controls the autonomous island, into a corner. "It makes it harder for them to consider alternative solutions. So it's a real lack of situational awareness," he said. “There are a lot of ways to go about it. I would like to see something pretty expansive. I think Greenland is part of the North American land mass,” Bolton added later. “And I think it's not irrational to say that a closer political relationship with the United States makes sense.” Bolton even noted that the U.S. has previously occupied the island. Before Pearl Harbor, when Denmark had fallen to the Nazis, the local government of Greenland, “fearful of being taken over by Canada or Norway, invited the United States in,” Bolton said. “After Donald Trump's remarks,” he continued. “I think it's very unlikely the current local government of Greenland would do that.”