Denmark’s foreign minister says his country has a “fundamental disagreement” with the United States over Greenland after talks at the White House.
Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the meeting with U.S. Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio was open and respectful, but made clear Denmark strongly opposes U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the U.S. should take control of Greenland.
Rasmussen said Denmark and Greenland told U.S. officials that a takeover of the island is unacceptable. Trump later repeated that the U.S. needs Greenland for national security, especially because of its location in the Arctic.
Greenland is a self-governing territory of Denmark and is important for military monitoring and missile defence. The U.S. already has a military base there and is allowed to send more troops under existing agreements.
The talks did not lead to a major agreement, but the countries agreed to create a working group to keep discussions going. Denmark and Greenland said they are open to more U.S. military cooperation, but not U.S. ownership.
Greenland’s foreign minister said the territory wants cooperation, not a takeover.
Several European countries, including Sweden, Germany, the U.K. and France, said they support Denmark and Greenland and are exploring ways to help with security in the region.
Polls show most people in Greenland and the U.S. oppose the idea of Greenland becoming part of the United States.
