Trump Raises Greenland Control Issue Before Key Vance Talks

On Wednesday, hours before Vice President J.D. Vance was scheduled to meet Danish and Greenlandic officials for negotiations, Trump said that anything short of US sovereignty over Greenland would be “unacceptable.”

In a post on his social media platform, Trump reiterated that the United States “needs Greenland for national security purposes.” He added that NATO should “lead the way” in securing control of the island, warning that otherwise Russia or China could do so.

“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES,” Trump said. “Anything less than that is unacceptable.”

Greenland has become the center of a growing geopolitical dispute, with Trump repeatedly insisting that the US should own the island, while residents of its capital, Nuuk, say it is not for sale. The White House has not ruled out the possibility of taking control of the Arctic island by force.

Trump said

Vance is set to meet Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington on Wednesday to discuss the island, which is a semi-autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.

Along Nuuk’s narrow, snow-covered main street, international journalists and camera crews have been stopping passers-by every few meters to ask their views on a crisis that Denmark’s prime minister has warned could threaten the transatlantic security alliance.

Also reads : Donald Trump India tariff : ‘Can raise tariffs on them very quickly,” Trump threatens India over Russian oil imports, praises Prime Minister Modi

Tuuta Mikaelsen, a 22-year-old student in Nuuk, said she hoped American officials would “back off.”

Greenland’s Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, told a news conference in Copenhagen on Tuesday that “if we had to choose between the United States and Denmark right now, we would choose Denmark. We decide on NATO. We decided on the Kingdom of Denmark. We have chosen the EU.”

When asked about Nielsen’s remarks later on Tuesday, Trump responded, “I disagree with him. I do not know who he is. I know nothing about him. But that will be a major problem for him.”

Greenland is strategically important because melting ice caused by climate change is opening shorter trade routes to Asia. The changes could also make it easier to extract and transport previously inaccessible deposits of critical minerals used in computers and mobile phones.

In his statement on Wednesday, Trump said Greenland was “vital” to the United States’ Golden Dome missile defense program. He has also argued that the island should play a larger role in America’s defense strategy, citing alleged threats from Russian and Chinese ships.

However, both academics and Greenland residents reject those claims.

“The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast-food market,” said Lars Vintner, a heating engineer. He added that despite regularly sailing and hunting, he has never seen Russian or Chinese vessels.

His friend Hans Norgaard agreed, saying, “What Donald Trump has said about all these ships is pure fantasy.”

Denmark has said that the United States — which already operates military bases in Greenland — is welcome to expand its presence there. As a result, “security is just a cover,” Vintner said, suggesting Trump’s real aim is to control the island and benefit from its untapped natural resources.

Norgaard said he had filed a police complaint in Nuuk over Trump’s “aggressive” behavior, claiming US authorities were threatening Greenlanders and NATO.

Mikaelsen added that Greenlanders benefit from being part of Denmark, which provides free healthcare, education, and student loans, saying, “I don’t want the US to take that away from us.”

More Diplomatic Efforts

After the White House meeting, Løkke Rasmussen and Motzfeldt, along with Denmark’s ambassador to the United States, are expected to meet senators from the Arctic Caucus in the US Congress.

Senators Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat from New Hampshire, and Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska, have introduced bipartisan legislation that would prohibit the use of US Defense or State Department funds to annex or seize control of Greenland — or any NATO member’s sovereign territory — without the consent of that ally or authorization from the North Atlantic Council.

A bipartisan group of senators is also scheduled to travel to Copenhagen later this week to meet Danish and Greenlandic officials.

Last week, Denmark’s key European partners joined Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in issuing a statement affirming that Greenland belongs to its people and that “it is for Denmark and Greenland, and them alone, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland.”

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told RTL radio on Wednesday that France will open a consulate in Greenland on February 6, following a decision made last summer.

“Attacking another NATO member makes no sense; it is even counterproductive to the interests of the United States,” Barrot said. “I am hearing this from an increasing number of people in the US. This blackmail must clearly stop.”