President Donald Trump intensified his push for Greenland on Wednesday, declaring that full U.S. control of the Arctic island is the only acceptable outcome, even as American and European officials prepared for high-level talks aimed at easing tensions.
Writing on his social media platform, Trump doubled down on his long-held argument that the United States “needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security.” He insisted that “NATO should be leading the way for us to get it,” warning that failure to act would leave the island vulnerable to Russia or China.
“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES,” Trump wrote. “Anything less than that is unacceptable.”
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The remarks came just hours before Vice President JD Vance was scheduled to host Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s foreign affairs minister Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington. Greenland is a semiautonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, which is a NATO ally of the United States.
Trump’s renewed rhetoric has intensified unease among U.S. allies and residents of Greenland alike. The White House has not ruled out the use of force to take control of the island, a position that has alarmed European leaders and sparked firm opposition in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, where residents have repeatedly said the island is not for sale.
Ahead of the Washington meeting, France’s foreign minister condemned what he described as U.S. “blackmail” over Greenland, reflecting growing frustration within NATO. Denmark’s prime minister has gone further, warning that the dispute could potentially threaten the future of the alliance itself.
On Nuuk’s narrow, snow covered main street, international journalists and camera crews have been stopping residents every few meters to ask their views on the crisis. Many have expressed fatigue and anger at the sudden global attention.
Tuuta Mikaelsen, a 22-year-old student, told The Associated Press that she hoped American officials would get the message to “back off.”
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Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen struck a defiant tone on Tuesday while speaking at a news conference in Copenhagen. “If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark. We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU,” he said.
Trump responded sharply when asked later about Nielsen’s remarks. “I disagree with him. I don’t know who he is. I don’t know anything about him. But, that’s going to be a big problem for him,” the president said.
Greenland’s strategic value has grown as climate change accelerates the melting of Arctic ice, opening the door to shorter shipping routes between Europe and Asia. The island also holds vast untapped deposits of critical minerals used in technologies such as computers and mobile phones.
Trump has repeatedly argued that U.S. control of Greenland is necessary to strengthen American security, citing what he describes as threats posed by Russian and Chinese vessels operating in the region.
That justification, however, is increasingly being challenged by experts and Greenlanders, who question both the scale of the threat and the idea that U.S. ownership is the only way to address it.
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