Europe Backs Greenland After Trump Resumes Takeover Threats

European officials pledged to support Greenland after US President Donald Trump restarted his campaign to take the self-governed island in the wake of his strike on Venezuela.

Across the continent, Europe’s biggest powers expressed solidarity with Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory within the Danish kingdom, shortly after Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen asserted that Trump has no right to annex Greenland.

“I stand with her, and she’s right about the future of Greenland,” UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Sky News on Monday, adding that Greenland’s future is for Denmark and Greenland to decide.

The responses come as speculation mounts that the US may use a variation of its Venezuela playbook on Greenland. Trump himself made the connection on Sunday, saying the island could be another target following his move to depose Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and take control of the South American country.

France swiftly reiterated its support of Denmark and Greenland’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders and the Danes, and it is up to them to decide what to do with it,” French Foreign Ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux told television channel TF1. “Borders cannot be changed by force.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul made the same point, noting that “Greenland would, in principle, also be subject to NATO defense.”

The European Commission, the European Union’s executive branch, downplayed comparisons between Trump’s designs on Venezuela and Greenland.

“Greenland is an ally to the US and is also covered by the NATO alliance and that is a big big difference,” said Paula Pinho, the commission’s chief spokesperson. “We therefore completely stand by Greenland and in no ways do we see a possible comparison with what happened.”

The US is effectively the NATO alliance’s leader, however. If Trump were to take military action against Greenland, it would create an unprecedented situation, with one NATO member moving on an alliance ally.

Pinho said there was no reason for the US to take over Greenland, stressing that the country should decide its own future. And she noted that Maduro did not have democratic backing.

“Nicolás Maduro lacked the legitimacy of a democratically elected leader and therefore the events over the weekend provide the opportunity for a democratic transition led by the Venezuelan people,” she said.

Pinho also endorsed comments from Greenland’s premier, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, who called Trump’s threats “completely unacceptable” and said that “enough is enough.”

“Our country is not an object in great-power rhetoric,” he said in a post on LinkedIn. “We are a people. A country. A democracy. That must be respected — especially by close and loyal friends.”

Nielsen similarly rejected the comparisons between Venezuela and Greenland.

“When the US president talks about ‘needing Greenland’ and links us with Venezuela and military intervention, it is not just wrong. It is disrespectful,” he said.

Trump has long argued that the US must control Greenland to ensure its own security. But the move to extract Venezuela’s president set off fresh alarm bells in Copenhagen, raising new concerns that Trump may soon set his sights on Greenland.

“We need Greenland from a national security situation,” Trump said Sunday aboard Air Force One, adding that “Denmark is not going to be able to do it.”

He even put a vague timeline on the situation.

“We’ll worry about Greenland in about two months,” Trump said. “Let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days.”

Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, urged Trump to stop threatening to take control of Greenland, emphasizing that the island is covered by NATO’s collective defense guarantee and that the US already has extensive military access to it under existing agreements.

Photograph: Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen; Photo credit: Omer Messinger/Getty Images

Topics Europe