A bird flies over a house hidden in the shadow of a mountain in Nuuk, Greenland, March 10, 2026.
Florent Vergne | AFP | Getty Images
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Wednesday rebuked President Donald Trump’s recent move to seek U.S. control of Greenland, saying the Scandinavian country was ready to defend “every inch” of its territory.
Speaking to reporters on the second day of the NATO summit in Turkey’s capital Ankara, Denmark’s Frederiksen stressed the message that Greenland is not for sale.
Her comments came shortly after the US president renewed his threat to seek an autonomous Danish territory, suggesting the US may withdraw troops from Europe in response to continued regional backlash over the issue.
“Our position is clear because of what has been going on for so long. Of course, Greenland is not for sale,” Frederiksen said. “We want everyone, including all allies, to respect the right to self-determination of the people of Greenland. We are also a sovereign nation and everyone must respect our territorial integrity and sovereignty.”
Asked by CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick if Denmark was militarily prepared to defend Greenland if it were attacked, Frederiksen said: “We are prepared to defend every corner of NATO, including our own territory.”
He added: “One of the reasons we founded NATO all those years ago is that if something were to happen to one of us, we should all stand up for each other.”
In a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday, President Trump said Europe’s failure to align with his expansionist aspirations “hurts our relationship with NATO.”
President Trump said Greenland “should be managed by the United States, not Denmark.” “And when they don’t agree with that, and we’re spending all our money to help relations with Russia, we don’t have to spend money.”
The US president also hinted that his country could “withdraw all of our soldiers from Europe,” adding: “Because as you’re probably aware, Europe is a very different place than it was 20 years ago.”
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