Speaking to an audience of world leaders on Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he is not considering military force to take Greenland from Denmark, but still issued a warning over his interest in subsuming the strategically important and mineral-rich island. Meanwhile, Denmark is reportedly considering a significant boost to its military presence on Greenland to defend it while understanding any conflict with America would be “ugly.”
Trump’s increasing insistence in controlling Greenland threatens to fracture the NATO alliance, where most of the nations oppose the American leader’s stance. You can catch up with our latest coverage of this growing controversy here.
“We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be, frankly, unstoppable, but I won’t do that. OK?” Trump said during his speech on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “Now everyone’s saying, ‘Oh, good.’ That’s probably the biggest statement I made, because people thought I would use force. I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force.”
“All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland,” Trump added, before making a veiled threat.
“We want a piece of ice for world protection, and they won’t give it,” the U.S. leader scoffed. “We’ve never asked for anything else, and we could have kept that piece of land, and we didn’t. So they have a choice. You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative, or you can say no, and we will remember.”
Before ruling out the use of force to take Greenland, Trump repeated his assertion that the U.S. is the only nation that can protect it against threats from China and Russia and called for “immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States. Just as we have acquired many other territories throughout our history, as many of the European nations have, they’ve acquired, there’s nothing wrong with it.”
Greenland’s location, between Europe, China and the continental United States, is a major reason for Trump’s interest in the island.
However, the U.S. operates one of its most strategic military outposts in Greenland. This is spearheaded by Pituffik Space Force Base, the U.S. military’s northernmost installation, a critical node in the U.S. ballistic missile early warning system, and also the world’s northernmost deep-water seaport. The installation also features a sprawling airbase. You can read in more detail about the U.S. military presence on the island here.
While Trump stating he won’t use force to seize Greenland is surely welcome news for America’s NATO allies, trust is at an all time low between many in the alliance and the White House. He has also made similar comments during other crises, from Iran to tariffs, that ended up going in another direction. As such, it’s doubtful they will all take him at his word, at least at this point in time.
Case in point, Trump’s speech was met with distrust from Denmark, where his words aren’t taken as a given.
“It’s clear from this speech that the president’s ambition is intact,” Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters in Copenhagen. “In isolation it’s positive that the president says what he does regarding the military, but that does not make the problem go away.”
Even before the speech in which he also derided NATO, European leaders were angered by Trump’s stance toward the alliance. Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni suggested that Europe would close military installations to the U.S., which relies heavily on European bases to project power there and in the Middle East.
Regardless of why Trump wants Greenland, hours before he spoke at Davos, Danish media said the country is considering sending more troops, as well as warships and aircraft, to protect the island.
“Plans are currently being worked on in Denmark to bring up to 1,000 soldiers from the Army to Greenland during 2026,” Denmark’s TV-2 news outlet reported on Wednesday. “In addition, there are possible additional contributions from the Navy and Air Force. In total, approximately 150 soldiers have so far arrived in Kangerlussuaq and approximately the same number to Nuuk – including approximately 30 mountain infantrymen from France, who are also on an exercise.”
“The many combat soldiers say something about how seriously the Armed Forces and thus the top of the government take this task,” the outlet added.
One Danish government leader acknowledged just how difficult it would be to defend Greenland should Trump order an attack.
“Denmark would, of course, defend Greenland with the means at our disposal,” Rasmus Jarlov, head of the Danish Defense Committee, told the German Bild news outlet on Wednesday. “However, we also understand the difference in size between Denmark and the United States. And we know that it will be a very difficult fight.”
“I don’t want to speculate on what it would look like, but it will get ugly,” Jarlov added.
The Danish parliamentarian also lashed out at Trump’s claims that China and Russia are threatening Greenland.
“That’s a completely fabricated story and simply wrong,” Jarlov told Bild. “No Chinese warship has been sighted in the region for 10 years. Furthermore, there are neither Chinese nor Russian direct investments in the country.“
Jarlov added that the tensions over Greenland are another sign that the U.S. cannot be counted on as a strategic partner.
“Europe must now have its own nuclear weapons, since we see that we can no longer rely on the protection of the Americans,” he urged.
Trump’s interest in Greenland has France calling for NATO to hold a military exercise in Greenland, presumably as a show of force and alliance solidarity.
France is “ready to contribute” to that effort, according to a statement from French President Emmanuel Macron’s office on Wednesday.
“The request comes as the transatlantic alliance is deeply upset over U.S. threats to take over the island and after U.S. President Donald Trump snubbed an invitation from the French president to join G7 leaders in Paris to iron out differences,” Politico reported.
However, there is nothing in the works for such an exercise, a senior NATO military official told The War Zone.
“There is no military planning currently underway at the moment within NATO for a NATO exercise in Greenland,” the official said.
In response to the French suggestion, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shot back at Macron, chiding him for the nation’s struggling economy.
The growing rift between Trump and Europe is also roiling trade in the wake of Trump’s announcement that he will impose tariffs on eight European nations opposed to turning over Greenland.
“European countries hold trillions of dollars of US bonds and stocks, some of which sit with public sector funds,” Bloomberg Business noted. “That’s spurring speculation they could sell such assets in response to Trump’s renewed tariff war, potentially driving borrowing costs up and equities down given US reliance on foreign capital.”
Highlighting that concern, the European Parliament has suspended its work on the EU’s trade deal with the U.S., brokered with the Trump administration last summer. The move is in “protest at the demands to acquire Greenland and the accompanying threats of fresh tariffs.”
“The EU assembly has been debating various components of the agreement struck in Turnberry, Scotland, and its trade committee had been scheduled to vote on them next week,” the German DW news outlet reported on Wednesday.
It remains to be seen how European leaders, as well as financial markets, react to Trump’s speech today. Given that this is one of the biggest issues on the world stage at the moment, we will continue to watch for developments.
Update: 2:43 PM Eastern –
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump claimed he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte “formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland, and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region.” He also rescinded his decision to impose tariffs on Europe as a result.
Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com