The foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland have failed to change the US position on Greenland, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said last night, after meeting at the White House with US Vice President J.D. Vance for high-stakes talks on President Donald Trump's demands that Washington take control of the autonomous Danish territory.
Rasmussen said they had a “frank but constructive discussion” with US officials about Greenland, and that “fundamental disagreements remain.” He stressed that “it is not necessary for the US to take over Greenland” and added that “there are no immediate threats from China and Russia” that Denmark and Greenland, together with their allies, cannot deal with on their own.
Rasmussen said that there is no support among the Greenlandic population for any American intervention. “We want to cooperate with our American friends and allies, but it must be cooperation based on respect and must respect our red lines,” he said, adding that “Greenland is covered by Article 5” of the NATO charter.
Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motsfeldt took a similar tone, saying that there should be discussions about how to strengthen cooperation with the US, "but that does not mean that Greenland should be under American ownership."
Ahead of the meeting, which lasted less than two hours, Greenland and Denmark announced they had begun increasing their military presence in and around Greenland, in close cooperation with NATO allies, as part of a pledge to strengthen Arctic defenses.
According to a statement from the Danish Ministry of Defense, the increased military presence will include a series of exercises throughout 2026.
Germany will send its first troops to Greenland today, a government spokesman said last night, after Sweden and Norway announced similar moves. More than a dozen reconnaissance soldiers will be deployed, the spokesman told Reuters. Norway said earlier on Wednesday it would send two defense personnel to Greenland. The announcement came after Norwegian Defense Minister Tore Sandvik told Reuters on Wednesday that the personnel would “map further cooperation between the (NATO) allies.” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson also announced on Wednesday that his country would send a group of military officers to Greenland at Denmark’s request.
Trump has repeatedly said in recent weeks that the strategically located and mineral-rich island is crucial to US security and that the US must own it to prevent Russia or China from seizing it. He has said that “all options are on the table” when it comes to owning the territory, rhetoric that has seriously strained relations between Copenhagen and Washington.
“The United States needs Greenland for national security. NATO should lead the way in getting it,” the US president wrote on social media. The alliance would become “much stronger and more effective” if the territory were under US control, he argued. “It is key to the Golden Dome we are building,” he said, referring to the missile defense system.
In a subsequent tweet, referring to Russia and China, Trump wrote: “NATO: Tell Denmark to get them out of here, Now! Two dog sleds won’t solve it! Only the US can!!!”
According to expert reports, taking over the territory could cost the US up to $700 billion, American media reported.
Greenland and Denmark say the island is not for sale, that threats of force are reckless, and that security concerns should be addressed among allies.
"The ultimate goal is to find some compromise, or to make a deal that would at least calm down Donald Trump's rhetoric enough," Andreas Ostehagen, research director for Arctic and ocean policy at the Oslo-based Fridtjof Nansen Institute, told Reuters.
Noah Redington, an analyst and former political advisor to former Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, said there were concerns in Denmark and Greenland that Motsfeld and Rasmussen could be treated in the same way as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was publicly humiliated in a meeting with Trump and Vance at the White House in February 2025.
"This is the most important meeting in the history of modern Greenland," Redington told Reuters.
Denmark and Greenland had initially requested a meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, hoping for a two-way conversation to resolve the crisis between the two NATO allies. However, Rasmussen said Vance wanted him, as vice president, to host the meeting at the White House.
The current rhetoric, according to Reuters, indicates that Greenland's leaders are changing their approach in how they deal with the diplomatic crisis.
Until recently, they emphasized Greenland's path to independence. However, now their public statements emphasize Greenland's unity with Denmark more. "This is not the time to gamble with our right to self-determination while another country is talking about taking us over," Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen told the Greenlandic daily Sermitsiaq.
"That doesn't mean we don't want something in the future. But here and now we are part of the kingdom and we stand with the kingdom. That is crucial in this serious situation," he said.
Trump's desire to take over Greenland contrasts with Americans' opposition to annexing the Arctic island, a new poll shows.
Only 17 percent of Americans support Trump's efforts to acquire Greenland, and a significant majority of both Democrats and Republicans oppose using military force to annex the island, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
About 47 percent of respondents disapprove of U.S. efforts to take over Greenland, while 35 percent said it was not safe, in a two-day survey that ended on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, European allies reiterated their support for Denmark and Greenland ahead of the White House meeting, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying on Wednesday that Greenlanders can "count on us."
In Paris, Emmanuel Macron said that if the sovereignty of a European country and its allies were affected, the domino effects would be unprecedented. France will open a consulate in Nuuk on February 6.
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