‘Enough is enough’: Greenland flatly rejects Trump’s calls for annexation
Share and Follow

Greenland’s leaders issued a sharp rebuke of Donald Trump’s renewed calls to annex it Thursday, after the president once again expressed his desire to take over the Arctic island.

“I think it will happen,” Trump said during a news briefing at the Oval Office, after being asked directly about his vision to acquire the semiautonomous nation. He added: “We really need it for national security.”

Outgoing Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egede responded in a Facebook post: “Enough is enough.”

Egede added that he planned to summon the leaders from all parties in Greenland to issue a joint rejection of Trump’s overtures.

Image: Daily Life In Greenland, The Autonomous Danish Territory Coveted By Trump
Snowcapped buildings in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital.Joe Raedle / Getty Images

Trump told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that the U.S. needs the island “for international security.” He added: “We have a lot of our favorite players cruising around the coast, and we have to be careful.”

Rutte, sitting next to Trump, did not directly comment on the president’s statement because he said he did not “want to drag NATO” into the issue, according to Reuters.

But, Rutte added, “We know things are changing there, and we have to be there.”

The sharp exchange between Trump and Greenland’s leaders comes after the self-governing region of Denmark held a tightly contested parliamentary election earlier this week, in which the pro-business Demokraatit party defeated Egede’s ruling Inuit Ataqatigiit party in a surprise result. The Demokraatit party will now need to form a coalition government.

President Trump Meets With NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte In The Oval Office Of The White House
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks during a meeting with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Thursday.Andrew Harnik / Getty Images

Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the country’s likely next prime minister, has also rejected Trump’s suggestion. In a Facebook post Thursday, he said the president’s statement was “inappropriate and just shows once again that we must stand together in such situations.”

Greenland, the world’s largest island, sparsely populated with 56,000 people, was thrust into the limelight after Trump took office Jan. 20 and called for its U.S. acquisition, saying its vast mineral wealth and existing U.S. military base are strategically important against rivals Russia and China.

All candidates ahead of Greenland’s election said they did not want their island to become part of the U.S. amid growing calls for independence from Denmark, its former colonial ruler, which still controls decisions on foreign and defense policy.

Greenland won the right to hold a referendum to gain full independence from Denmark in 2009, but a poll at the time also found that many were divided on the pace at which to do so.

On Thursday, Trump also undermined Copenhagen’s claim to the island, saying it was “very far away and really has nothing to do.”

“A boat landed there 200 years ago or something? And they say they have rights to it. I don’t know if that’s true. I don’t think it is,” he added.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has repeatedly rejected Trump’s suggestion in the past, stating that “Greenland is not for sale.”

Rasmus Jarlov, chairman of the defense committee in Denmark’s parliament, said in a post on X on Thursday that Denmark did not appreciate Rutte “joking with Trump about Greenland like this.”

“It would mean war between two NATO countries,” he added.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Charles Leto, lifeguard charged in Douglass Park, Chicago shooting of Marjay Dotson, Jeremy Herred, resigns: Chicago Park District

Lifeguard at Douglass Park, Chicago, Facing Charges for Shooting Incident Involving Marjay Dotson and Jeremy Herred, Steps Down: Chicago Park District

CHICAGO (WLS) — The Chicago Park District said it has launched an…
California police nab 7 foreign nationals in jewelry store heist, 1 suspect still loose

California police nab 7 foreign nationals in jewelry store heist, 1 suspect still loose

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Seven men accused of…
Diddy trial: Jury reaches partial verdict in Sean 'Diddy' Combs' sex trafficking trial

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Trial Update: Jury Delivers Partial Verdict in Sex Trafficking Case

NEW YORK — The jury in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking trial…
‘What’s In The Box’? Not Gwyneth Paltrow’s Head, But Rather A Neil Patrick Harris Netflix Game Show 

Discover What’s Inside the Box: Neil Patrick Harris Hosts an Exciting Netflix Game Show, Not Featuring Gwyneth Paltrow’s Head

What’s in the box?! No, this is not a scene out of…
Breakthrough in decades-old Illinois cold case of Wendy Michael

New Lead Discovered in Wendy Michael’s Decades-Old Illinois Cold Case

MADISON COUNTY, Ill. – Authorities in Madison County, Illinois, identified a homicide…
Trump pardons Florida shark divers convicted of theft

Impact of Trump’s ‘Beautiful Bill’ on AI legislation in Florida

A provision of the bill could block states, including Florida, from enforcing…
Son of ‘El Chapo’ to plead guilty in US drug trafficking case

El Chapo’s son to admit guilt in US drug trafficking case

CHICAGO (AP) — The son of notorious Mexican drug kingpin “El Chapo”…
Man arrested for deadly immigrant smuggling operation that killed Romanian family of four and his own brother

Man arrested for deadly immigrant smuggling operation that killed Romanian family of four and his own brother

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! A dual U.S.-Canadian citizen…