Washington, DC, January 5 (ANI): US President Donald Trump has once again asserted that the United States needs Greenland for national security reasons, citing the growing presence of Russia and China in the Arctic region. His remarks came a day after US strikes in Venezuela that led to the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday night, Trump said Greenland was critical to US security.
“We need Greenland. It’s so strategic right now. Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” Trump said. “We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it.”
Trump further claimed that Europe supports the idea.
“The European Union needs us to have it, and they know that,” he said.
The comments followed a dramatic US military operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of Maduro during an overnight raid in Caracas. Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in annexing Greenland, a vast, resource-rich island in the Atlantic and a self-governing territory under the Kingdom of Denmark. He has argued that Greenland’s strategic Arctic location and its reserves of critical minerals make it vital for US defence interests.
Both Denmark and Greenland have consistently rejected any such proposal.
Reacting strongly, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called on Trump to stop making threats regarding Greenland.
“It makes absolutely no sense to talk about the need for the United States to take over Greenland,” Frederiksen said in a statement.
“The US has no right to annex any of the three nations in the Danish kingdom,” she added.
“I would therefore strongly urge the United States to stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people, who have very clearly said that they are not for sale,” Frederiksen said.
Trump reiterated his stance earlier on Sunday in an interview with The Atlantic, saying, “We do need Greenland, absolutely. We need it for defence.”
Tensions escalated further after a controversial social media post by Katie Miller, the wife of Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. Hours after the Venezuela operation, she posted an image of Greenland painted in the colours of the US flag, accompanied by the word “SOON,” CBS News reported.
The post drew immediate backlash from Danish officials. Denmark’s ambassador to the United States, Jesper Moeller Soerensen, responded by stressing the need for respect for Denmark’s territorial integrity.
“We are close allies and should continue to work together as such,” he said, adding that Denmark and the US “work together to ensure security in the Arctic.”
Soerensen also noted that Denmark had significantly boosted its Arctic security efforts in 2025, underscoring that it takes joint security responsibilities seriously.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen also criticised the post, calling it “disrespectful,” but reiterated Greenland’s position.
“Our country is not for sale and our future is not determined by social media posts,” Nielsen said in a statement translated from Greenlandic.
“We are a democratic society with autonomy, free elections and strong institutions. Our position is clearly rooted in international law and internationally recognised agreements.”
Trump’s renewed remarks have heightened diplomatic unease, particularly after his appointment of Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy to Greenland in December—a move criticised in both Copenhagen and Nuuk, CBS News reported.
With Washington pressing its strategic claims and Denmark pushing back forcefully, the dispute has emerged as a new point of tension between long-standing NATO allies. (ANI)
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