Denmark, Greenland and Trump
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The White House and Denmark contradicted each other in public about what they had agreed to this week as President Trump continued to demand U.S. ownership of Greenland.
The visit comes after high-level talks in Washington failed to dissuade Trump from his plan to annex the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
Denmark’s foreign minister said on Wednesday that a “fundamental disagreement” with U.S. President Donald Trump over the future of Greenland remained unresolved after high-level talks in Washington, even as Denmark and NATO allies moved to increase their military presence in the Arctic territory amid rising tensions.
Denmark's foreign minister said the closed-door meeting was a "frank but also constructive" discussion. He said a high-level working group would be formed "to explore if we can find a common way forward.
Trump has sought to use his sweeping tariff agenda to pressure other nations to make economic concessions and align themselves with his foreign policy priorities.
Yesterday, after Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, vowed to cast his lot with Denmark over the United States, Trump said that he didn’t “know anything about” Nielsen but that such a choice would be a “big problem for him.”
Trump has said acquiring Greenland is a national security priority, and that the U.S. must own the island to prevent Russia or China from taking it. The shortest route from Europe to North America runs via Greenland, making it important for the U.S. ballistic missile early-warning system.
After the meeting, Denmark's foreign minister said they're eager to work with the U.S. while respecting the "red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark."