Greenland\u2019s government said it will intensify efforts to ensure the island\u2019s defenses are managed within the NATO military alliance, pushing back on renewed threats from the US about taking over the territory.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll NATO member states, including the United States, share a common interest in the defense of Greenland,\u201d the prime minister\u2019s office said in a statement issued late Monday. \u201cThe Government coalition in Greenland will therefore, in cooperation with Denmark, work to ensure that dialogue and further development of Greenland\u2019s defense take place within the NATO framework.\u201d<\/p>\n
The message comes ahead of a high-stakes meeting of Danish and Greenland foreign ministers with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Wednesday, according to media reports.<\/p>\n
US Vice President JD Vance will participate in Wednesday\u2019s meeting, Denmark\u2019s Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said, according to Danish news agency Ritzau.<\/p>\n
The stated aim for the talks is to help defuse President Donald Trump\u2019s renewed threats toward Greenland and begin repairing strained ties with Washington over the strategically important island.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe United States has once again reiterated its desire to take over Greenland,\u201d officials in Nuuk said in the statement. \u201cThis is something the government coalition in Greenland cannot accept under any circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\nMarco Rubio, right, and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on January 12. Photographer: Alex Wong\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Teresa Ribera, executive vice-president of the European Commission, also condemned the US approach, calling the threats unacceptable and highlighting that Greenland is not for sale.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s quite obvious that the European project has been targeted as something to destroy both externally and internally,\u201d she said at at doorstep. \u201cEurope grows up in difficult times. These are really difficult times.\u201d<\/p>\n
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After a meeting with Rubio Monday night, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said he is optimistic that Europe can reach a \u201ccompromise\u201d with the US over Greenland. Rubio didn\u2019t make any official comments after the meeting.<\/p>\n
The dispute has also prompted Trump to renew criticism of other members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, after Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned that any attempt to take over Greenland would undermine the alliance.<\/p>\n
Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said on Tuesday he will meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday next week in Brussels. Greenland\u2019s minister for foreign affairs, Vivian Motzfeldt, will also participate in that meeting, he said, according to local media.<\/p>\n
\u00a9 2026 Bloomberg<\/p>\n
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