WASHINGTON — Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen once again rebuffed President Trump’s effort to acquire his icy island, telling reporters that he prefers Danish rule.
“If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark,” Nielsen said at a press conference Tuesday alongside Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, per a translation.
“We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU.”
Nielsen, who has long opposed Trump’s pressure campaign to acquire the autonomous territory, warned that “there are many indications that the most challenging part is ahead of us.”
Just prior to Nielsen’s remarks, his office warned that Greenland will not accept a US takeover under “any circumstance” and pressed for NATO to defend it in the event of an attack.
Last week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stressed that “utilizing the U.S. military is always an option.” Trump later told reporters that “We are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not.”
“Because if we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor.”
The sharp words come before Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are set to meet with the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland on Wednesday.
Multiple European allies have rejected Trump’s push to acquire Greenland.
Trump’s keeping military force on the table — and has seemingly rattled the Europeans because of his green-lighting Operation Absolute Resolve to capture Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, proving his willingness to approve kinetic options.
When asked about Nielsen’s remarks, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told The Post that the president “believes that Greenland is a strategically important location that is critical from the standpoint of national security.”
“He is confident Greenlanders would be better served if protected by the United States from modern threats in the Arctic region,” she added. “The President is committed to establishing long-term peace at home and abroad.”
A bipartisan group in Congress is currently mulling legislation to restrain Trump from using the military to acquire Greenland or attack fellow NATO allies.
“One thing must be clear to everyone: Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States. Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States,” Nielsen stressed again to reporters Tuesday.
Denmark has been part of NATO for some 75 years, and Frederiksen argued that Copenhagen has weathered “completely unacceptable pressure from our closest ally.”
Greenland has been formally controlled by Denmark since 1814, having previously been under the Dano-Norwegian crown, with Scandinavian influence there dating back centuries.
