Denmark, Greenland envoys meet White House amid Trump's Greenland acquisition push

Trump’s position

In a New York Times interview published Thursday, Trump said he has to possess the entirety of Greenland rather than rely on treaty arrangements. “I think that ownership gives you a thing that you can’t do with, you’re talking about a lease or a treaty. Ownership gives you things and elements that you can’t get from just signing a document,” Trump told the newspaper.

The U.S. is party to a 1951 defense agreement that gives it broad rights to set up military bases in Greenland with the consent of Denmark and Greenland. Earlier, Rubio told a select group of U.S. lawmakers that the Republican administration’s intention is to eventually purchase Greenland, as opposed to using military force, according to the AP report.

Vice President JD Vance, framing the issue as one of defense, told reporters that European leaders should “take the president of the United States seriously.” “What we’re asking our European friends to do is take the security of that landmass more seriously, because if they’re not, the United States is going to have to do something about it,” Vance said.

On Wednesday, Vance told Fox News that Denmark “obviously” had not done a proper job securing Greenland and that Trump “is willing to go as far as he has to” to defend American interests in the Arctic. “Just because you did something smart 25 years ago doesn’t mean you can’t do something dumb now,” Vance said, adding that Trump “is saying very clearly, ‘you are not doing a good job with respect to Greenland.’”

Senate pushback

The administration is beginning to hear resistance from some lawmakers, including members of Trump’s own party. In a Senate floor speech Thursday, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said the rhetoric from some in the Trump administration is “profoundly troubling.”

“We’ve got a lot ahead of us in 2026,” Murkowski said. “Greenland - or taking Greenland, or buying Greenland - should not be on that list. It should not be an obsession at the highest levels of this administration.”

Greenlanders’ perspective

Aaja Chemnitz, one of two Greenlandic politicians in the Danish parliament, told the Associated Press that many Greenlanders are uncomfortable with the discussion’s tone and direction. “Many Greenlanders feel that the remarks made are disrespectful,” she said. “Many also experience that these conversations are being discussed over their heads. We have a firm saying in Greenland, ‘Nothing about Greenland, without Greenland.’”

Chemnitz said most Greenlanders wish for more self-determination, including independence, but want to strengthen cooperation with partners based on “mutual respect and recognition of our right to self-determination.” She denied Trump’s claim that Greenland is “covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” describing Greenland as “a long-standing ally and partner to the U.S.” with a shared interest in Arctic stability and security.

Greenland is home to about 56,000 mostly Inuit people, with 80% of the island lying above the Arctic Circle.

European reaction

French President Emmanuel Macron denounced what he called “the law of the strongest” in a speech to French ambassadors at the Elysee presidential palace Thursday. “It’s the greatest disorder, the law of the strongest, and everyday people wonder whether Greenland will be invaded, whether Canada will be under the threat of becoming the 51st state (of the United States) or whether Taiwan is to be further circled,” Macron said. He pointed to an “increasingly dysfunctional” world where great powers, including the U.S. and China, carry “a real temptation to divide the world amongst themselves.”

Leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the U.K. joined Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen earlier this week in defending Greenland’s sovereignty.

Treaty framework and existing military presence

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has detailed the terms of the 1951 defense agreement that has governed U.S. military access to Greenland for decades. The American military presence in Greenland has decreased from thousands of soldiers across 17 bases to the remote Pituffik Space Base in the northwest, which has approximately 200 soldiers and supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance operations for the U.S. and NATO.

Rasmussen said the existing framework already offers room for expanded American presence. “The 1951 agreement offers ample opportunity for the United States to have a much stronger military presence in Greenland,” he said. “If that is what you wish, then let us discuss it.”

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen expressed optimism about the planned talks with Rubio. “This is the dialogue that is needed, as requested by the government together with the Greenlandic government,” Poulsen told Danish broadcaster DR.

Denmark has separately announced a 14.6 billion-kroner ($2.3 billion) agreement with the governments of Greenland and the Faroe Islands to improve capabilities for surveillance and maintaining sovereignty in the Arctic region. Last year, Denmark’s parliament also approved legislation allowing U.S. military bases on Danish soil, widening a 2023 agreement with the Biden administration that gave U.S. troops broad access to Danish air bases.