Greenland’s prime minister said his people would choose Denmark over the United States if asked to make such a choice “here and now.”
Jens-Frederik Nielsen’s remark at a joint news conference with the Danish prime minister was the strongest made by a representative of the semi-autonomous Danish territory since U.S. President Donald Trump renewed his annexation plans.
Trump says the United States must “own” Greenland to defend against Russia and China. The White House has suggested purchasing the island, but has not ruled out using force to annex it.
Denmark is another NATO member and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has warned that military force would mean the end of the transatlantic defense alliance.
Asked later Tuesday what he thought of Nielsen’s comments, Trump responded: “That’s their problem, I don’t agree with him… It’s going to be a big problem for him.”
Although it is the least populated territory, Greenland’s location between North America and the Arctic makes it well-positioned for early warning systems for missile attacks and for monitoring ships in the region.
Trump has repeatedly said Greenland is vital to U.S. national security, claiming without evidence that it is “covered with Russian and Chinese ships everywhere.”
The United States already has more than 100 troops permanently stationed at its Pituffik base on the northwest tip of Greenland, a facility operated by the United States since World War II.
Under existing agreements with Denmark, the United States has the authority to send as many troops as it wants to Greenland.
But Trump told reporters in Washington last week that a leasing deal was not enough: the United States “has to own it” and “NATO has to understand that.”
At the press conference in Copenhagen, the Danish capital, Frederiksen did not mince his words in condemning “the totally unacceptable pressure from our closest ally.”
She warned that “many signs indicate that the hardest part is ahead of us.”
Greenland’s prime minister said the island was “facing a geopolitical crisis,” but the island’s position was clear:
“If we have to choose here and now between the United States and Denmark, we choose Denmark,” he said.
“One thing must be clear to everyone. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States. Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States.”
The Copenhagen news conference comes a day before Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt travel to the United States to meet with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Denmark’s NATO allies – major European countries as well as Canada – rallied to its support this week with statements reaffirming that “only Denmark and Greenland can decide on matters concerning their relationship.”
Stressing that they were as committed as the United States to Arctic security, they said this must be achieved by allies, including the United States, “collectively.”
They also called for “respecting the principles of the United Nations Charter, including sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders.”
Concerns about the future of the territory resurfaced after Trump used military force on Saturday against Venezuela to seize its president, Nicolás Maduro.
Trump previously made an offer to buy the island in 2019, during his first presidential term, only to be told it was not for sale.
In recent years, Greenland’s natural resources – including rare earths, uranium and iron – have attracted increased interest, becoming increasingly easier to access as ice melts due to climate change. Scientists believe it could also contain significant oil and gas reserves.
