Officials from Greenland and Denmark have met in Washington with top White House officials over President Donald Trump’s push to take over Greenland.
Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio participated in the hourlong talks with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt to discuss Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.
The meeting came as Trump moved to ramp up the pressure by suggesting that NATO should help the United States acquire the world’s largest island and saying anything less than it being under American control is unacceptable.
However, a few hours before the officials sat down, Trump reiterated on his social media site that the US “needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security.” He added that “NATO should be leading the way for us to get it” and that otherwise Russia or China would “AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!”
“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES. Anything less than that is unacceptable.”
Donald Trump
In response, Greenland’s representatives to the US and Canada posted on social media, “Why don’t you ask us?” and noted the low percentage of island residents who favor becoming part of the US.
Greenland is strategically important because, as climate change causes the ice to melt, it opens up the possibility of shorter trade routes to Asia.
That also could make it easier to extract and transport untapped deposits of critical minerals which are needed for computers and phones.
Trump said in his post that Greenland is “vital” to the United States’ Golden Dome missile defense program.
He also has said that he wants the island to expand America’s security and has cited what he says is the threat from Russian and Chinese ships as a reason to control it.But both experts and Greenlanders question that claim.
Danish And Greenland Officials To Meet Senators
Later today, Løkke Rasmussen and Motzfeldt, along with Denmark’s Ambassador to the US, are due to meet with Senators from the Arctic Caucus in Congress.
A bipartisan delegation of US lawmakers is also heading to Copenhagen later this week to meet Danish and Greenlandic officials.
more to come…
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