NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte gives remarks in this undated photo. Rutte this week downplayed the prospect of military conflict with the U.S. over Greenland, saying allies are working to address President Donald Trump’s concerns about security in the Arctic. (NATO)
STUTTGART, Germany — President Donald Trump on Wednesday said anything less than full American control of Greenland would be unacceptable, and he urged NATO to back his bid to wrest the huge island territory from fellow ally Denmark.
Greenland “becomes far more formidable and effective” against adversaries such as Russia and China by being in U.S. hands, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, adding that the alliance “should be leading the way for us to get it.”
He also linked control of Greenland to the future development of the American air defense system dubbed the Golden Dome.
Trump’s comments came hours before a high-stakes meeting Wednesday between Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Greenlandic and Danish officials.
The U.S. has long maintained a military presence in Greenland and currently has about 200 troops in the country who are involved with an early-warning ballistic missile defense mission.
Danish officials have said they are open to having more U.S. forces in Greenland but have balked at Trump’s takeover bid.
Trump’s post Wednesday, though, said “anything less than (full control) is unacceptable.”
The escalating crisis over the status of Greenland has dominated security talks on both sides of the Atlantic in recent days.
NATO’s top official this week downplayed the prospect of coming to blows with the United States over Greenland, saying efforts are underway to address Trump’s concerns over security in the Arctic.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Tuesday was peppered with questions during a European Parliament forum in Brussels, where growing tensions over Trump’s push to take control of another ally’s territory dominated the conversation.
When asked whether any ally would support the United States if it were to take the autonomous Danish territory of Greenland by force, Rutte deflected, saying members of the bloc, including the United States, were working to “make sure that the Arctic is safe.”
Rutte also told the group that he wouldn’t publicly address a dispute between NATO allies, saying such matters would be dealt with behind closed doors.
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said Tuesday that the island in the far northern Atlantic Ocean faces a “geopolitical crisis” and that if forced to pick sides, it would keep the status quo.
“We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU,” Nielsen said.
When asked by reporters about Nielsen’s comments, Trump doubled down.
“That’s going to be a big problem for him,” he said.
Rutte’s meeting Tuesday with European parliamentarians highlights the delicate position he finds himself in. Even when asked whether it would be acceptable in principle for one ally to threaten to use force to take another’s territory, Rutte demurred.
In recent days, Trump has said the United States is prepared to control Greenland “the easy way or the hard way.”
Key NATO members in Europe appear to have gotten the message. Officials from France, the United Kingdom and Germany have indicated that their countries are prepared to increase their military presence in Greenland and elsewhere in the Arctic.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Monday told reporters that Berlin is ready to do more.
“If the American president is looking at what threats might come from Russian or Chinese ships or submarines in the region, we can of course find answers to that together,” Wadephul said.
Rutte also said Tuesday that inn the coming weeks, NATO will take up the issue of enhancing its position in the High North.
As sea ice melts in the Arctic, new shipping lanes are opening potential access to important natural resources. Greenland itself also is home to large reserves of rare-earth minerals.
It’s unclear whether a larger presence of European military in Greenland would satisfy Trump’s concerns or dissuade him from his push.
Unspecified U.S. action related to the Arctic island could come within “weeks or months,” according to Trump’s Arctic commissioner, Thomas Dans.
In an interview with USA Today on Tuesday, Dans said the aim was “to get the people of Greenland on board” with American control of the island.
However, recent polling showed single-digit public support for that among the roughly 57,000 residents of the territory.