The US president cited national security as the rationale for his effort to take control of the self-governing Arctic island.
Published December 23, 2025
US President Donald Trump has stepped up his campaign for Greenland, declaring the Danish territory vital to Washington’s national security and saying he has appointed a special envoy “to take charge.”
President Trump’s comments on Monday came as the leaders of Denmark and Greenland protested remarks by the new special envoy, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, that the Arctic region is “part of the United States.”
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Speaking to reporters at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida, President Trump reiterated his position that Greenland is critical to U.S. national defense interests.
“We don’t need Greenland for its minerals, we need it for our national security,” the US president said. “If you look at Greenland, you look up and down the coast, there are Russian and Chinese ships everywhere…We have to have it.”
The remarks came after President Trump announced Landry’s appointment on Sunday, in which he praised the governor for understanding “how important Greenland is to our national security.”
Later, Landry posted on X that he was “honored to take on a volunteer position to help make Greenland part of the United States,” adding that the role does not affect his duties as governor.
Landry’s statement drew harsh criticism from Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens Frederik Nielsen, who issued a joint statement insisting that “Greenland belongs to Greenlanders.”
“We cannot annex other countries. There can be no discussion about international security,” they said. “The United States must not occupy Greenland.”
Neilson wrote separately on Facebook that the U.S. move “may sound big, but it doesn’t change anything for us.” “We decide our future ourselves,” he said.
“This is a difficult situation that lifelong allies have put us in,” Frederiksen added in an Instagram post.
Earlier on Monday, Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Lökke Rasmussen announced he would summon U.S. special envoy Kenneth Howley to express Denmark’s deep anger at Landry’s appointment. Rasmussen also said the governor’s comments about Greenland’s annexation were “totally unacceptable.”
The Trump administration put further pressure on Copenhagen on Monday, halting leases on five large offshore wind projects under construction off the U.S. East Coast, including two being developed by Denmark’s state-run Orsted.
Meanwhile, the European Union quickly rallied behind Denmark.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa declared “full solidarity” with Copenhagen and stressed that “territorial integrity and sovereignty are fundamental principles of international law.”
Since returning to the White House in January, President Trump has repeatedly declared that the United States “needs” the resource-rich island and has not ruled out using military force to secure it. The autonomous territory, located between Europe and North America, is home to a critical U.S. ballistic missile defense system and has significant mineral deposits that could reduce U.S. dependence on Chinese exports.
A poll conducted in January found that the majority of Greenland’s 57,000 people want independence from Denmark, but not becoming part of the United States.
