2025 is ending much as it began: with President Donald Trump talking about annexing Greenland.

On Sunday, Trump appointed Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry as a special envoy to Greenland with the goal, as Landry put it, “to make Greenland a part of the US.” Though the territory has been moving gradually toward greater independence, Greenland has been under Danish rule since the 18th century. “We need Greenland for national protection,” Trump told reporters on Monday.

The move provoked a sharp response from the prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland, who said in a joint statement: “National borders and the sovereignty of states are rooted in international law. … You cannot annex other countries.” Other European leaders have weighed in, as well, with French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirming that “France’s unwavering support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland.”

Trump has been talking about either buying or annexing the world’s largest island since 2019, during his first term. He brought up the issue again last January, when he raised alarm in European capitals by refusing to rule out using military force to take the territory if necessary. But, while he once described control of Greenland as an “absolute necessity” for US national security, the issue had been on the back burner for most of this year until Landry’s appointment, with the exception of occasional flare-ups over

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