Signing off as America’s top diplomat, Antony Blinken was feted yesterday by ally France — and forced to brush aside bombastic remarks by incoming president Donald Trump.Blinken, on a farewell tour less than two weeks before Trump takes office, visited Paris where President Emmanuel Macron was presenting him with the Legion of Honor, France’s highest order of merit. “I would like to tell you that you show the face of the America that we love,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told Blinken before the ceremony. But as Blinken looked to highlight President Joe Biden’s efforts to nurture alliances, the secretary of state was asked to address threats by Trump against Greenland.The president-elect has made clear his designs on oil-rich and strategically placed Greenland, an autonomous territory of European Union member Denmark, and refused to rule out military action. Asked about the remarks at a news conference with Barrot, Blinken, without using Trump’s name, said: “The idea expressed about Greenland is obviously not a good one, but maybe more important, it’s obviously one that’s not going to happen.”“So we probably shouldn’t waste a lot of time talking about it,” Blinken said. Blinken, a longtime Democratic Party policymaker and aide to Biden who generally has steered clear of electoral politics, also played down statements by Elon Musk, the technology entrepreneur joined at the hip with Trump for months.The South African-born billionaire, who has been tasked by Trump with an initiative to curb government spending, has rattled European politicians by championing the far right in Germany and Britain.“Private citizens in our country can say what they want,” Blinken said. “He, like any American, has the right to express his views.”
