Trump raises his voice against Denmark and Greenland ahead of White House meeting
The republic is pressuring NATO to intervene on its behalf in the campaign to annex the Arctic island.
WashingtonJust hours before the White House meeting between Greenlandic and Danish representatives with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, President Donald Trump reiterated his claim to the Arctic island. In two posts on Truth Social, the president insisted once again on the need for the United States to control the territory. Trump demanded that NATO tell Denmark to "get the hell out of here," referring to the island, and again mocked Denmark's capabilities to defend it: "Two dog sleds won't do it! Only the USA can!" In the second post, he emphasized that it is "unacceptable" for Greenland to be in the hands of any country other than the United States.
Trump raises his voice against the Danes while at the White House everything is ready for Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to receive the Greenlandic-Danish delegation, headed by Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmusn and his wife Grosmovia, and Danish Foreign Minister Motzfeldt. The meeting was announced last week by Rubio, after Copenhagen and Nuuk requested a face-to-face meeting to reduce tensions. Since the military intervention in Venezuela, Washington has been bombarding Europe with conflicting statements about its claims to the island: either the diplomatic route and agreeing to sell it, or by force. Essentially, the White House has already established the framework in which the only possible solution involves relinquishing control of the territory.
European leaders already condemned the imperialist ambitions of the US last week, and yesterday, before the delegation arrived in Washington, The governments of Denmark and Greenland stood up to Trump:We are not seeking conflict, but our message is clear: Greenland is not for sale.” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen appeared together at Christiansborg Palace to send a message of unity. When a reporter asked the president what he thought of the message from Christiansborg, Trump stated that he didn't know who the Greenlandic prime minister was and that it was his problem not wanting to be part of the U.S. “I disagree with him. I don't know who he is. But this will certainly be a big problem for him.”
Trump pressures Rutte
In both posts on Wednesday, Trump addressed the Atlantic Alliance, saying it should "lead" the campaign to hand over the Arctic island. "Otherwise, China or Russia will, and that's not going to happen." Trump is pressuring NATO after its Secretary General, Mark Rutte, distanced himself from threats of a US military intervention in Greenland, which would constitute aggression by one ally against another. "Now is not the time to act alone. And it is not the time to create divisions among ourselves," Rutte said yesterday during a speech at a forum in the European Parliament.
Rutte did not want to anger the daddy from Washington and has decided to opt for a supposed neutrality in the face of Trump's threats to another member country of the Alliance. "I will never comment when there are talks between allies. It's not my place," he argued. "When there are discussions between allies, my role is to make sure that we resolve the problems."
Under the cover of the precedent of the military intervention in Venezuela, Trump has launched a psychological war against the country and all of Europe to obtain the island. The president, who already made public his aspirations to annex the Arctic island last year, has been constantly bombarding Europe with statements about controlling the territory. On Friday, during the meeting with representatives of the main oil companies, Trump again said that he would take the island "by hook or by crook" and threatened the Europeans that if the US does not control it, Russia or China will.