Danish Prime Minister to Trump: Greenland is not for sale news

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen confirmed on Wednesday that Greenland is “not for sale,” reiterating her rejection of US President Donald Trump’s statements regarding his desire for the island to be under the control of the United States.

Frederiksen’s statements came on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, a day after Trump reaffirmed his position that Greenland should be under US control, but he did not repeat the threats he had made at the beginning of the year.

Frederiksen told reporters, “I listened to the US president yesterday, and I think the United States’ position is very clear on this issue, unfortunately. Our position was also clear from the beginning: Greenland is not for sale.”

She added, “Of course Greenland is not for sale, and we hope that everyone – including allies – will respect the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination.”

She stressed that Denmark and Greenland are sovereign, saying, “We are sovereign countries, and we need everyone to respect our territorial integrity and sovereignty.”

The Danish Prime Minister also affirmed that her country is ready to defend every inch of NATO territory – including Denmark’s territory – if it is subjected to any attack, noting that Denmark also depends on its allies in NATO to fulfill their obligations within the framework of the principle of collective defense.

Trump criticizes NATO

For his part, Trump – during the NATO summit – expressed his dissatisfaction with the United States’ inability to control Greenland, and saw this as a “big problem.”

Trump said during his meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, “I am not satisfied with NATO because of what it did regarding Greenland,” adding, “Greenland is very important to the United States, but it is not important to Denmark.”

The US President has repeatedly stressed that his country needs Greenland for reasons related to national security, and Denmark and Greenland rejected these statements.

Greenland is autonomous but belongs to Denmark. It is the largest island in the world and has a central location in the Arctic.