‘We cannot negotiate our sovereignty,’ said the Danish Prime Minister on the Greenland agreement – nationally
Any talks with US President Donald Trump cannot include discussions on the sovereignty of Greenland and Denmark, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a statement a day after Trump announced that he and NATO had agreed on a “framework” of the agreement.
“We can discuss everything political; security, investment, economy. But we cannot discuss our sovereignty,” Frederiksen said Thursday morning.
Greenland is a subsidiary of Denmark, a member of NATO and the European Union.
Frederiksen said he spoke with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, before and after his meeting with Trump in Davos on Wednesday.
NATO is “fully aware” of Denmark’s position, he said, adding that he had received assurances from NATO that the question of sovereignty would not be on the table.
Frederiksen said he was told that “only Denmark and Greenland can make decisions on matters affecting Denmark and Greenland.”
Denmark’s prime minister said his country is open to dialogue on Arctic security with the US, including Trump’s “Golden Dome” missile defense plan, “as long as this is done with respect for our territorial integrity.”
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Frederiksen’s statement comes hours before the European Union’s top leadership meets in Brussels on Thursday.
The European Council is a decision-making body made up of the heads of state and government of the 27 EU member states, as well as EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The question of Greenland, Denmark and the future of US-EU relations will be front and center, as the leaders gather for what is being called an “informal dinner” at 7 pm local time, or 1 pm eastern.
“We will discuss the latest developments in transatlantic relations and their implications for the European Union, and coordinate the way forward,” European Council President António Costa said in a statement.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Europe must do more to protect the Arctic “within the framework of NATO.”
“Denmark and the people of Greenland can count on our unity,” Merz said in a social media post on Thursday.
In his speech on Wednesday, Trump said: “Now what I’m asking for is ice, cold and not good that can play an important role in the peace of the world and the protection of the world.”
“It is a very small request compared to what we have given them for many decades,” he continued.
Trump announced shortly after he reached a “framework” with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on “a future agreement regarding Greenland” and “the entire Arctic region.”
In his speech, which lasted more than an hour and a half, Trump reiterated that the US needs Greenland for “national security purposes” and “global security”.
The White House said Trump is “hopeful” he can reach a deal with NATO.
“If this deal goes through, and President Trump is very hopeful it will, the United States will be achieving all of its goals with respect to Greenland, at very little cost, forever,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly.
In his Davos speech, Trump said his claim for Greenland included “proper title and ownership.”
However, in a speech on Tuesday, Costa said “only they, Denmark and Greenland, can decide on their future.”
“We will not accept that the law of the powerful overcomes the rights of the weakest. Because international laws are not fair. And the alliances will not simply comply with the sequence of agreements,” he said.
He added that Europe will not accept violations of international law anywhere, “be it in Ukraine, Greenland, Latin America, Africa, or Gaza.”
After announcing the “draft” agreement on Greenland, Trump added that he will no longer be able to impose tariffs threatened by European nations for their support for the Danish territory next month as part of the draft agreement, which he announced in his Public Truth forum.
“Based on the very productive meeting I had with the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, we have drafted a future agreement regarding Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump wrote.
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