Denmark responds after Trump renewed threats to take over Greenland

Denmark and Greenland on Sunday night, December 4 urged U.S. President Donald Trump to stop making threats about taking over Greenland, after he reiterated his desire to do so in an interview with The Atlantic.

“It makes absolutely no sense to talk about the U.S. needing to take over Greenland. The U.S. has no right to annex any of the three countries in the Danish Kingdom,” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a statement.

Trump told the magazine: “We do need Greenland, absolutely. We need it for defense.”

He made the remarks a day after the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and said Washington would run the Latin American country, raising concerns in Denmark that similar pressure could be applied to Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory.

“I would therefore strongly urge the U.S. to stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people, who have very clearly said that they are not for sale,” Frederiksen said.

Greenland’s Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also criticised Trump’s comments, calling them both inaccurate and offensive.

“When the President of the United States says that ‘we need Greenland’ and links us to Venezuela and military intervention, it’s not just wrong. It’s disrespectful,” Nielsen said.

Greenland has become a renewed focus of U.S. attention after Trump on December 21 named Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy to the island, a move that drew criticism from both Denmark and Greenland. Trump has repeatedly advocated for Greenland to become part of the United States, an idea Landry has publicly supported.

The Arctic island’s strategic location between Europe and North America makes it a key element of the U.S. ballistic missile defence system, while its vast mineral resources have attracted interest as Washington seeks to reduce dependence on Chinese exports.

Greenland, a former Danish colony, gained the right to declare independence under a 2009 agreement but remains heavily dependent on financial support from Denmark. Copenhagen has spent the past year trying to repair strained relations with Greenland while also easing tensions with the Trump administration by increasing investment in Arctic defence.