As Greenland stands up to Trump, president says anything short of US control ‘unacceptable’ |
NUUK, Greenland (AP) — US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that NATO should help the US acquire Greenland and anything less than having the island in American hands is unacceptable, hours before US Vice President JD Vance was to host Danish and Greenlandic officials for talks.
In a post on his social media site, Trump reiterated his argument that the US “needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security.” He added that “NATO should be leading the way for us to get it” and that otherwise Russia or China would — “AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!”
“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES,” Trump wrote. “Anything less than that is unacceptable.”
Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, is at the center of a geopolitical storm as Trump insists he wants to own it — and residents of its capital, Nuuk, say it isn’t for sale. The White House hasn’t ruled out taking the Arctic island by force.
Vance, along with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, was to meet Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington later Wednesday to discuss Greenland.
In perhaps their sharpest pushback to date, Denmark and Greenland’s prime ministers underscored on Tuesday that the territory is part of Denmark, and thus covered by the umbrella of the NATO military alliance.
“Dear Greenlanders, you should know that we stand together today, we will do so tomorrow, and we will continue to do so,” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said during a joint press conference in Copenhagen.
“If we have to choose between the United States and........