Greenland’s PM says ‘enough is enough’ after Trump renews annexation threats – National
US President Donald Trump has renewed his calls for the US to take over Greenland for US security reasons after the military operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Trump’s intention to oversee the governance of Venezuela has renewed concerns in Denmark that Greenland, an independent Danish territory, may face a similar fate.
“It’s a good plan right now. Greenland is covered by Russian and Chinese ships everywhere,” Trump told reporters on Sunday as he flew to Washington from his Florida home. “We need Greenland from a national security point of view, and Denmark can’t do it.
“You know what Denmark did recently to tighten security in Greenland? They added another dog sled. It’s true. They thought that was a good move.”
(Denmark has actually earmarked $4.2 billion in additional defense spending by 2025 to increase security in the Arctic and North Atlantic, including Greenland. Another $4.5 billion would be spent on 16 more F-35 fighter jets from the US, the BBC reported.)
Asked during an interview with The Atlantic earlier Sunday what the US military’s actions in Venezuela might mean for Greenland, Trump replied: “They’ll have to see for themselves. I really don’t know.”
“We need Greenland, absolutely. We need it for our own defense,” Trump added.
Katie Miller, the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, posted a photo of an area covered in an American flag with an X on Saturday, writing, “SOON.”
Greenland’s response to Trump’s threats
Greenland’s leader said “enough is enough” after Trump renewed his threats to take over the island.
“Threats, pressure, and rumors that you will be attacked have no place among friends,” Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said on Facebook on Sunday. “That’s not the way you talk to people who have repeatedly shown commitment, stability and honesty.
“Enough is enough. No more pressure. No more plans. No more dreams about integration.”
Nielsen said Greenland is “open to discussions” and “open to negotiations.”
“But it should be through proper channels and in relation to international law. And proper channels are not random and disrespectful posts on social media,” he continued. “Greenland is our home and our land. And it continues to be so.”
(LR:) Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and US President Donald Trump.
Leon Neal/Joe Raedle/Getty Images
He also addressed the photo Miller shared on social media, writing, “First of all, let me say calmly and clearly, that there is no reason to panic or be insecure.
“The photo shared by Katie Miller from Greenland is produced wrapped in an American flag and does not change anything. Our country is not for sale and our future is not decided by social media posts,” he wrote.
“But this image is not respectful, the relationship between countries and people is based on respect and international law and not on images that ignore our situation and our rights.
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There is no need to panic, but there is good reason to speak out against disrespect.”
Denmark’s ambassador to the United States, Jesper Moeller Soerensen, also responded to Miller’s photo, with a “friendly reminder” that Denmark expects “full respect for the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark.”
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Sunday that the US’s comments about needing to take Greenland were “absolutely absurd.”
“The United States has no right to occupy any of the three Commonwealth countries. The Kingdom of Denmark – and thus Greenland – is part of NATO and therefore under the security guarantee of this alliance,” said Frederiksen.
“We already have a defense agreement between the Kingdom and the United States today, which gives the United States extensive access to Greenland. And we, on the part of the Kingdom, have invested heavily in security in the Arctic.
“So I would strongly urge the United States to stop threats against a close historical ally and another country and other people who clearly say they are not for sale.”
On Monday, Frederiksen said he believed Trump was serious about taking over Greenland.
“Unfortunately, I think the American president should be taken seriously when he says he wants Greenland,” Frederiksen told public broadcaster DR. “I have made it clear where the Kingdom of Denmark is, and Greenland has repeatedly said that it does not want to be part of the United States.”
“If the United States attacks another NATO country, everything stops,” Frederiksen said.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb took to social media, writing, “No one decides for Greenland and Denmark but Greenland and Denmark themselves.”
“Our Nordic friend Denmark and @Statsmin have our full support,” he added.
“Greenland’s future belongs to them and the Kingdom of Denmark – and Denmark and the Kingdom of Denmark alone,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told reporters.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Monday that Greenland belonged to Denmark and suggested that NATO could discuss strengthening its defenses if necessary.
Trump’s previous comments on Greenland
Trump has repeatedly called for US sovereignty over Greenland, and has yet to deploy the military to control the mineral-rich island, located in the unfriendly Arctic.
In December 2025, Trump said that the US is not interested in Greenland for its mineral wealth.
“We have a lot of mineral deposits and oil and everything. We have more oil than any other country in the world,” Trump said. “We’ll have to fix everything.”
But he renewed his desire to rule Greenland so that his country would be safe.
“We need Greenland for our national security, not the minerals…. If you look at Greenland, you look up and down the coast, you have Russian and Chinese ships all over the place. We need it for our national security. We have to have it,” Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla.
Trump said he named Gov. Jeff Landry is the special envoy from Louisiana who has been appointed to the Arctic island to “lead the charge.”
“I am pleased to announce that I am appointing the Lt. Governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, as America’s special envoy to Greenland,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Jeff understands how important Greenland is to our National Security, and he will advance our Nation’s interests in the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Allies, and the rest of the world. Congratulations Jeff.”
Landry thanked Trump on X, writing, “It is an honor to serve in this voluntary capacity to make Greenland a part of the U.S. This in no way affects my position as Governor of Louisiana.”
Trump first expressed his interest in Greenland in 2019 during his first term in office. He said Greenland was “damaging Denmark a lot” and costing US$700 million a year. His solution was for the United States to buy Greenland, calling it a “big real estate deal.”
On December 2024, Trump renewed the unsuccessful calls he made during his first term for the US to buy Greenland, the world’s largest island, from Denmark.
“For the purpose of National Security and Liberty around the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” he wrote.
Greenlandic and Danish officials made it clear at the time that they wanted nothing to do with what Trump proposed.
When Greenland’s current prime minister, Nielsen, took office in March, he dismissed Trump’s claims that America would manage the island’s territory.
“President Trump says the United States will ‘get Greenland.’ Let me be clear: The United States will not get it. We do not belong to others. We decide our own future,” Nielsen said on Facebook.
An alert has been sent to Colombia
Trump, as he returned to Washington on Sunday evening, also put Venezuela’s neighbor, Colombia, and its president, Gustavo Petro, on notice.
Trump, going back and forth with reporters, said Colombia “is run by a sick man who likes to make cocaine and sell it to the United States.”
The Trump administration imposed sanctions in October 2025 on Petro, his family and a member of his administration for alleged involvement in the global drug trade. Colombia is considered the center of the world’s cocaine trade.
Trump began his months-long campaign to oust Venezuela’s Maduro by ordering a series of deadly strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats launched from the country to the Caribbean. The Trump administration eventually expanded operations to target suspected vessels in the eastern Pacific that originated in Colombia.
The US in September 2025 added Colombia to the list of countries that failed to cooperate in the war on drugs for the first time in almost 30 years. The appointment led to a reduction in American aid to the country.
“He’s not going to do it for a long time,” Trump said of Petro on Sunday. “He has cocaine factories and cocaine factories. He’s not going to do that.”
Asked if he might order the US to launch a military operation against Colombia, Trump replied, “Sounds good to me.”
– In files from the Associated Press and Reuters
