Denmark and Greenland rejected any suggestion of US control over Greenland, stating that the island’s sovereignty remains absolute, despite comments by Donald Trump that referenced a proposed Arctic security framework with NATO.
Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen condemned what she called threats, pressure, and condescending speech “from our closest ally for generations,” referring to the US. She criticized talk of “wanting to take over another country, another people, as if it were something you could buy and own,” directly referencing Trump’s proposal to purchase Greenland. Frederiksen called the behavior “entirely unacceptable” and reaffirmed Denmark’s sovereignty and commitment to international norms.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen echoed these sentiments and emphasized that only Greenland and Denmark hold the authority to make decisions about the island. The Prime Minister noted their red lines: respecting territorial integrity, upholding sovereignty, following international law, and ensuring mutual respect in decision-making. Greenland rejected any notion that it could be “owned” by another country, and stressed the need for respectful dialogue and consideration of each party’s intentions.
Much about Trump’s potential deal remained unclear. In a Fox Business interview, Trump said the US would have “all the military access we want” in Greenland. Several European leaders have responded to Trump’s statements, including French President Emmanuel Macron, who called his plans a form of colonialism and said Europe will not “passively accept the law of the strongest.”
Since 2019, during his first term and increasingly since his second-term election, Trump has repeatedly argued that the US should control Greenland. Trump has justified US control of Greenland on national security grounds. Trump repeated these claims at the World Economic Forum in Davos, saying the US should take control of Greenland while insisting he would not use force. He called Denmark “ungrateful” and said it owed the US for its defense during the Second World War. He said US control would allow development that would benefit both Europe and the US, and claimed no other country could secure the territory.
Greenland occupies a strategic position in the Arctic, close to North America and between major oceans, making it a strategic outpost for defense, surveillance, and military operations. The island sits along key Arctic and transatlantic routes and already hosts US. military infrastructure.
Greenland also contains substantial mineral and rare earth deposits used in batteries, electronics, and defense technologies. Climate change has further raised Greenland’s geopolitical profile. Melting Arctic ice has opened new shipping routes and improved access to the region, thereby shortening trade corridors and intensifying competition among major powers operating there.
