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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday he would meet with Denmark next week, as US President Donald Trump has repeated in recent days that he wants to take control of Greenland.
“If the president identifies a threat to the national security of the United States, every president retains the option to address it through military means. As a diplomat, which I am now and what we’re working on, we always prefer to resolve that issue in different ways, including in Venezuela,” Rubio told reporters when asked if the United States was willing to risk the NATO alliance by moving forward with a military option.
Rubio did not specify which officials he would meet, but Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt said Tuesday they had requested an urgent meeting with Rubio to discuss the situation. Rasmussen called for a “sensible dialogue”.
A U.S. military capture of Greenland from longtime ally Denmark would send shockwaves through the NATO alliance and widen the divide between Trump and European leaders.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that Trump and his advisers were “discussing a range of options” regarding Greenland and that “using the U.S. military was always an option available to the commander in chief.”
In addition, White House advisor Stephen Miller and some Republicans in Congress contested Denmark’s territorial claim to Greenland.
House Speaker downplays talk of military action
The Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson, during his weekly press briefing in Washington on Wednesday, dismissed the specter of military force.
“All this talk of military action and all that, I don’t even think it’s a possibility,” he said. “I don’t think anyone is seriously considering this. And in Congress, they certainly aren’t.”
When asked to compare his comments with Leavitt’s the day before, Johnson responded, “I’m not going to answer a thousand questions this morning to try to pit myself against the White House.”
Leavitt added Wednesday that the president’s “priority has always been diplomacy.” But Leavitt then highlighted the failure of diplomacy with Venezuela, which led to the seizure of autocrat Nicolás Maduro last week, even though Washington has long viewed Venezuela as an adversary, while Denmark and the United States are part of the NATO alliance.
WATCH | The Greenlandic MP believes that it is not yet time to panic:
Greenlandic MP and opposition leader Pelé Broberg responds to new US threats to acquire Greenland by pleading for direct negotiations with the Trump administration: “We want independence. They want security. Is there anything to be gained from both of us?
European governments are working on a plan for how to respond if the United States makes good on its threat to seize Greenland, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in an interview with France Inte radio. Barrot met his German and Polish counterparts on Wednesday.
Leaders of major European powers as well as Canada rallied behind Greenland this week, saying the Arctic island belongs to its people, following a new threat from Trump to seize the territory.
Historic treaty authorizes more US bases
Trump has repeated in recent days that he wants to take control of Greenland, an idea first expressed in 2019 during his first presidency. He says the island is critical to U.S. military strategy and that Denmark has not done enough to protect it.
The second Trump administration’s aggressive statements have caused confusion and dismay, as a 1951 agreement between the United States and Denmark gives Washington the right to move freely and build military bases in Greenland provided that Denmark and Greenland are informed.
WATCH | On the strategic importance of Greenland (from January 2025):
United States President-elect Donald Trump has long been fascinated with owning and controlling Greenland, from his interest in purchasing the country in 2019 to his recent refusal to rule out taking it by military force. Andrew Chang explores four potential reasons why Trump calls Greenland ownership an “absolute necessity.” Images provided by Getty Images, Reuters and The Canadian Press.
Leavitt stressed Wednesday that Trump was not the first U.S. president to inquire about acquiring the territory, even though Greenland and Denmark have repeatedly said the island is not for sale.
The US military maintains a permanent presence at Pituffik Air Base in northwest Greenland. As the world’s largest island with a population of just 57,000, Greenland is not an independent NATO member but is covered by Denmark’s membership of the Western alliance.
The island is strategically located between Europe and North America, making it a critical site for the US ballistic missile defense system for decades. Its mineral wealth also aligns with Washington’s ambition to reduce its dependence on China.
Trump has repeatedly said Russian and Chinese ships are plying the waters around Greenland, which Denmark disputes.
“The image of Russian and Chinese ships inside the Nuuk Fjord and massive Chinese investments is not correct,” Rasmussen told reporters Tuesday evening.
Ship tracking data from MarineTraffic and LSEG shows no presence of Chinese or Russian vessels near Greenland.
