ANI |
Updated: Jan 05, 2026 08:41 IST
Washington, [DC], January 5 (ANI): US President Donald Trump has once again declared that the United States necessarys Greenland for national security reasons, a day after strikes on Venezuela, which resulted in the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday night, Trump declared Greenland was critical to US security due growing presence of Russia and China in the Arctic region.
“We necessary Greenland. … It’s so strategic right now. Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” Trump declared. “We necessary Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it.”
Trump further claimed that Europe supports the idea.
“The European Union necessarys us to have it, and they know that,” he declared.
Trump’s remarks came just a day after the US carried out a dramatic military operation in Venezuela that resulted in the capture of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and his wife during an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants to annex Greenland, a vast, resource-rich island in the Atlantic that is a self-governing territory of Denmark. He has argued that taking control of Greenland is necessary for American defence interests.
Both Greenland and Denmark, a NATO ally of the United States, have consistently rejected the idea.
Reacting strongly, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called on Trump to stop building threats over Greenland.
“It creates absolutely no sense to talk about the necessary for the United States to take over Greenland,” Frederiksen declared in a statement.
“The U.S. has no right to annex any of the three nations in the Danish kingdom,” she added.
“I would therefore strongly urge the US stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another countest and another people, who have very clearly declared that they are not for sale,” Frederiksen declared.
CBS News, U.S. President Donald Trump speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from Florida to Joint Base AndrewsTrump has argued that Greenland‘s strategic location in the Arctic, along with its reserves of critical minerals utilized in high-tech industries, creates it vital for US security.
Earlier on Sunday, Trump reiterated his position in an interview with The Atlantic.
“We do necessary Greenland, absolutely. We necessary it for defence,” he informed the magazine.
Tensions further escalated after a controversial social media post by Katie Miller, the wife of Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. Late Saturday, hours after the US military operation against Venezuela, she posted an image of Greenland painted in the colours of the US flag, CBS News reported.
The post carried a single word, “SOON.”
The image sparked immediate backlash from Danish officials.
Denmark‘s ambassador to the United States, Jesper Moeller Soerensen, responded on Sunday with his own post.
“We expect full respect for the territorial integrity” of Denmark, Soerensen declared, sharing a link to Miller’s image.
“We are close allies and should continue to work toobtainher as such,” he added, stressing that Denmark and the US “work toobtainher to ensure security in the Arctic.”
Soerensen also noted that Denmark had “significantly boosted its Arctic security efforts” in 2025, displaying that it takes their “joint security seriously.”
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen also reacted strongly, calling the social media post “disrespectful” but building it clear that it would not alter Greenland‘s position, CBS news reported.
“Our countest is not for sale and our future is not determined by social media posts,” Nielsen declared in a statement translated from Greenlandic.
“We are a democratic society with autonomy, free elections and strong institutions. Our position is clearly rooted in international law and in internationally recognised agreements. It stands.”
Trump’s renewed comments have added to diplomatic unease, notably after he appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy to Greenland in December, a shift that drew criticism from both Copenhagen and Nuuk, CBS News reported.
With Washington pushing its strategic claims and Denmark pushing back forcefully, the dispute has emerged as a fresh point of tension between long-standing NATO allies. (ANI)
