Update on Greenland threat of warfare with Donald Trump after US ‘betrayal’
Greenland minister Naaja Nathanielsen has said Donald Trump’s threats have caused anxiety as she fielded questions about the risk of conflict with the US if it invades
Donald Trump’s threats against Greenland have been labeled a betrayal(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
A minister from Greenland has said people on the island feel betrayed by the US as she pleaded for a peaceful solution.
Naaja Nathanielsen, the territory’s business minister, told reporters in Parliament that discussions had taken place with allies about how they would respond to an invasion by Donald Trump. She said she would welcome more NATO troops on the island to guard against Russian and Chinese threats.
Ms Nathanielsen said Trump’s threat of an invasion were causing widespread anxiety as she praised Britain and European allies for standing firm. She stated: “We want a peaceful solution. We will work towards that for as long as we can. We we see no point in using weapons against each other. We should be friends. We are allies.”
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Asked whether Greenland would expect NATO support in the event of an invasion, she said: “I really cannot answer your question, because it implies that it would be one country being attacked by another NATO partner, but actually we would all be under attack.”
Describing the impact on the island’s population she said: “People are not sleeping, children are afraid, and it just fills everything these days. And we can’t really understand it.”
In the past fortnight the US President has ramped up threats of sending troops into Greenland, a Danish territory – saying it is needed for national security. Asked if she believed Trump was actually more interested in Greenland’s natural resources, Ms Nathanielsen said: “I think that all these narratives can be at play and there’s not one single true answer.”
She said people in Greenland are “very, very worried” about Trump’s statements and said: “We feel betrayed. We feel that the rhetoric is offensive, as we have stated many times before, but also, bewildering because we have done nothing but support the notion that freedom is a part of the American national establishment.”
But the minister said she was touched by nations like the UK, France and Germany standing with Greenland and Denmark in face of US threats.
US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland on Wednesday at the White House to discuss Trump’s interest in acquiring the island.
It comes after Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen reiterated that the island is not for sale – and said the territory does not want to be owned or ruled by the US.
The US president claimed over the weekend that he needed to “take Greenland” to prevent Russia or China from doing so.
