<\/p>\n
Donald Trump reiterated on Wednesday that the US needs Greenland and that Denmark cannot be relied upon to protect the island, even as he said that \u201csomething will work out\u201d with respect to the future governance of the Danish overseas territory.<\/p>\n
The remarks, which came after a high-stakes meeting between US, Danish and Greenlandic officials, indicate that fundamental differences remain between how Washington, Copenhagen and Nuuk see the political future of the island.<\/p>\n
\u201cGreenland is very important for the national security, including of Denmark<\/a>,\u201d Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. \u201cAnd the problem is there\u2019s not a thing that Denmark can do about it if Russia or China wants to occupy Greenland, but there\u2019s everything we can do. You found that out last week with Venezuela,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The Danish foreign minster said earlier on Wednesday that Trump remains intent on \u201cconquering\u201d Greenland as the talks with US officials failed to solve a \u201cfundamental disagreement\u201d that has led to unprecedented tensions between Washington and a Nato ally.<\/p>\n It was \u201cabsolutely not necessary\u201d for the US to seize Greenland, a largely self-governing part of the Danish kingdom, the Danish foreign minster, Lars L\u00f8kke Rasmussen, said late on Wednesday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t manage to change the American position. It\u2019s clear that the president has this wish of conquering Greenland. And we made it very, very clear that this is not in the interest of the kingdom.\u201d<\/p>\n Rasmussen urged Washington to engage in \u201crespectful\u201d cooperation over the Arctic island that is controlled by Copenhagen.<\/p>\n In a signal of European support, France, Germany and Norway have all said they would contribute troops to a multinational force led by Denmark that would lead to \u201can increased military presence in and around Greenland, comprising aircraft, vessels and soldiers, including from Nato allies\u201d, the Danish defence ministry has said in a statement.<\/p>\n The two sides did agree to create a working group to discuss ways to work through differences as Trump continues to call for a US takeover of the semi-autonomous territory of Nato ally Denmark.<\/p>\n \u201cThe group, in our view, should focus on how to address the American security concerns, while at the same time respecting the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark,\u201d Rasmussen told reporters after joining Greenland\u2019s foreign minister, Vivian Motzfeldt, for the talks.<\/p>\n The closely watched talks on Trump\u2019s demands to take over Greenland ended in Washington after nearly an hour.<\/p>\n The vice-president, JD Vance, and secretary of state, Marco Rubio<\/a>, hosted the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland on Wednesday in what observers worried could be an ambush meant to pressure the Danes into ceding the territory under US economic and military pressure.<\/p>\n Earlier, Trump said it would be \u201cunacceptable\u201d for Greenland to be \u201cin the hands\u201d of any country other than the US, reiterating his demand to take over the island hours before the high-stakes talks on its future.<\/p>\n \u201cThe US needs Greenland for the purpose of national security. Nato should be leading the way for us to get it,\u201d the US president said on social media<\/a>. The alliance would become \u201cfar more formidable and effective\u201d with the territory under US control, he claimed.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is vital for the Golden Dome that we are building,\u201d he said, referring to a proposed missile defence system.<\/p>\n