“Not for sale”
Trump reaches for Greenland again – Denmark reacts
Updated July 8, 2026 – 8:39 a.mReading time: 2 minutes
President Donald Trump apparently continues to pursue the goal of bringing Greenland under US control. The Danish head of government has a clear answer.
Denmark’s head of government Mette Frederiksen has the renewed demand of the US President Donald Trump after checking over Greenland sharply rejected. On the second day of the NATO summit Ankara said Frederiksen: “Greenland is of course not for sale.”
The largest island in the world belongs to Denmarkbut has a lot of political independence. “Of course we will defend the Kingdom of Denmark,” she said before the working session of heads of state and government.
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After his arrival in Ankara, Trump declared that the island should be controlled by the United States and not Denmark. A senior US official had previously made it clear that a takeover of Greenland was from the point of view of the USA is the only way to address security risks around the island in the long term.
There was already a big dispute over Greenland at the beginning of the year
At the beginning of the year, Trump openly threatened to take over the strategically important Arctic island – and in doing so not only snubbed NATO partner Denmark, but also raised doubts about the unity of the world’s largest military alliance and the mutual loyalty to the alliance. His reasoning: The territory that belongs to Denmark would otherwise not be there Russia and China sure – and therefore not the USA either.
He ultimately withdrew Trump’s threats to use military means if necessary – as well as the announcement of punitive tariffs against Germany and other European countries if they did not agree to sell the island to the USA. However, he stuck to his claims to the island. The governments of Denmark and Greenland firmly reject annexation by the USA. They have now started talks with Trump’s government with the aim of finding a compromise.
