Danish PM To Meet Party Leaders Over Trump's Greenland Remarks

Danish leaders were set to confer Thursday over US President-elect Donald Trump's ambitions to take control of Greenland which the foreign minister said were being taken seriously if not literally

Copenhagen, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Jan, 2025) Danish leaders were set to confer Thursday over US President-elect Donald Trump's ambitions to take control of Greenland which the foreign minister said were being taken seriously if not literally.

Trump, who takes office on January 20, set off new alarm bells on Tuesday when he refused to rule out military intervention over the Panama Canal and Greenland, both of which he has said he wants the United States to control.

European leaders have quickly supported the sovereignty of the Arctic island that is an autonomous Danish territory, while Russia has voiced concern for maintaining peace and stability in the region.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen's office confirmed to AFP that a meeting with Danish party leaders would be held at 7:30 pm (1830 GMT) on Thursday.

"Meeting the party leaders allows us to share the measures the government has taken over the last few days," Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters.

Lokke Rasmussen noted that while he did not believe Denmark was in a "foreign policy crisis", that did not mean "there couldn't well be one... if words turn to actions".

At the same time he conceded that the situation presented a "challenge" to his country.

Denmark has "no ambition whatsoever to escalate a war of words with a president on his way into the Oval Office," Lokke Rasmussen said.

"My own attitude is that you should take Trump very seriously but not necessarily literally. We take it so seriously that we are also working on it," he added.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni echoed that sentiment and dismissed speculation the United States might use force to take Greenland.

"I feel like I can rule out that the United States in the coming years will try to forcefully annex territories that interest them," Meloni told reporters at a press conference.

She said Trump's remarks were "more of a message to... other big global players".

Lokke Rasmussen on Wednesday said Copenhagen was open to talks with the United States to safeguard US interests in the Arctic, at a time when rivalries with China and Russia in the region are growing.

The United States has an active military base in the northwest of Greenland, which has a strategic location in the Arctic as ice melts due to climate change and opens up new shipping lanes.

Frederiksen also said Wednesday that the government was preparing to meet representatives from Greenland and the Faroe Islands -- another autonomous Danish territory -- on Friday.

In a post to Instagram, Frederiksen stressed that the government was doing everything it could to "protect Denmark's -- and the Danish Realm's -- interests."

Trump first said he wanted to buy Greenland in 2019 during his first term as US president, an offer quickly rejected by Greenland and Denmark.

Trump's latest comments came as his son, Donald Trump Jr., made a private visit to Greenland.

Greenland, which is seeking to emancipate itself from Denmark, holds massive untapped mineral and oil reserves, although oil and uranium exploration are banned.

Also on Thursday, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the territory's sovereignty must be respected, stressing that "Greenland is part of Denmark."

"We have to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Greenland."