Overview
- Speaking to reporters, President Trump insisted the U.S. will acquire Greenland rather than lease it and warned that Russia or China would take the island if Washington does not.
- Trump derided Greenland’s defenses as “two dog sleds” and said NATO “needs us much more than we need them,” while reiterating that U.S. control could come “the easy way or the hard way.”
- Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned a U.S. seizure could threaten NATO, and Denmark’s Defence Ministry restated a directive authorizing immediate force against any invasion of its territory, including Greenland.
- European leaders voiced support for Copenhagen, with Sweden calling a U.S. takeover a violation of international law and Germany emphasizing that Greenland’s future must be decided by its people and Denmark.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet Danish and Greenlandic representatives this week as media reports describe U.S. contingency planning, and Greenlandic leaders and residents express growing fear over the rhetoric.