LONDON (AP) \u2014 Britain is discussing with NATO allies how it can help beef up security in the Arctic to counter threats from Russia and China, a government minister said Sunday. <\/p>\n
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the talks are \u201cbusiness as usual\u201d rather than a response to recent threats by U.S. President Donald Trump<\/a> to take over Greenland<\/a>.<\/p>\n Trump has said that he would like to make a deal to acquire Greenland,<\/a> a semiautonomous region of NATO ally Denmark<\/a>, to prevent Russia or China from taking it over. He said Sunday night that making a deal for Greenland would be \u201ceasier\u201d and insisted the U.S. needed to acquire it. <\/p>\n \u201cOne way or the other, we\u2019re going to have Greenland,\u201d he told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew back to Washington.<\/p>\n Greenland, with a population of around 57,000, is defended by Denmark, whose military is dwarfed by that of the U.S., which has a military base on the island. Denmark\u2019s prime minister has warned that a takeover would threaten NATO<\/a>.<\/p>\n Trump dismissed that idea on Sunday, proclaiming himself the savior of NATO for encouraging member countries to boost their defense spending. <\/p>\n \u201cI like NATO,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n He then questioned \u201cwhether or not, if we needed NATO, would they be there for us? I\u2019m not sure they would.\u201d<\/p>\n In fact, NATO\u2019s Article 5 common defense guarantee, which treats an attack on one member as an attack on them all, has only been invoked once, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States, leading to NATO\u2019s operation in Afghanistan.<\/p>\n Tensions have grown between the U.S. and Denmark since the Trump administration renewed its warnings against Greenland. Jesper M\u00f8ller S\u00f8rensen, Denmark\u2019s ambassador to the U.S., fired back at newly tapped U.S. Greenland envoy Jeff Landry, who said in a social media post that the \u201cU.S. defended Greenland\u2019s sovereignty during (World War II) when Denmark couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n S\u00f8rensen responded that Denmark has always stood alongside the U.S., particularly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and that only Greenlanders should decide their future. <\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s continue to address security challenges in the Arctic as partners & allies,\u201d S\u00f8rensen wrote. Danish officials are meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio this week. <\/p>\n The U.K. agrees with Trump that Russia and China are increasingly becoming more competitive in the Arctic Circle, Alexander said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhilst we haven\u2019t seen the appalling consequences in that part of the world that we\u2019ve seen in Ukraine, it is really important that we do everything that we can with all of our NATO allies to ensure that we have an effective deterrent in that part of the globe against (Russian President Vladimir) Putin,\u201d Alexander told the BBC. <\/p>\n