Copenhagen and Nuuk propose Nato mission in Greenland. Trump: 'Use of force? No comment"

US President Donald Trump responded 'no comment' to a question about a possible use of force to conquer Greenland during a brief phone interview with NBC News. The US president insisted during the interview that he will '100 per cent' pursue his plans to hit European countries with tariffs if he does not get the Arctic territory. Regarding Europe, he said it 'should focus on the war with Russia and Ukraine, because, frankly, you can see where it's taken them...' and 'not on Greenland'. Separately, he reiterated his frustration with Norway over the Nobel Peace Prize, saying: 'Norway totally controls it, despite what they say,' he said, 'They like to say they have nothing to do with the Nobel, but they have everything to do with it.

It is important to show Donald Trump that his is not the way forward, to 'stand up for the principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty to show the American President that we have a vision and he will never be able to get what he wants by putting pressure on us,' Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said after meeting with his British counterpart Yvette Cooper. Denmark and Greenland agreed on the formation of a working group with the United States to discuss differing positions only last week, 'to move the discourse from social media to a room where we could actually discuss' possible solutions on the basis of the existing relationship. "This is what we agreed on. We are pragmatic, cold-blooded Scandinavians." The White House is contradicting its own positions. "For a moment I had thought that we would be able perhaps not to solve the problem but to find a way forward. And that belief has been dashed by the President's statements." "It is important that we all believe that international law must speak to show Trump that he cannot continue down this path."

"Denmark and Greenland are not alone. It is good to see my colleagues Troels Lund Poulsen and Vivian Motzfeldt. Arctic security is a shared transatlantic interest, which we can discuss with our US allies. But tariff threats are not the way forward. Sovereignty is not negotiable. We have no interest in seeking confrontation, but we will defend our position. Europe has a range of instruments at its disposal to protect its interests'. High Representative Kaja Kallas put this on X after the meeting with colleagues from Denmark and Greenland.

"I will, 100 per cent." This is how Donald Trump responded to Nbc News who asked him whether he will go ahead with his plans to hit European countries that have sent military personnel to Greenland with tariffs, in the absence of an agreement ceding control of the island Danish autonomous territory to the United States.

European retaliation against American designs on Greenland, in the form of tariffs against the US, 'would be very unwise'. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters upon his arrival at the World Economic Forum. Bessent explained that the Trump administration wants control of Greenland as a 'strategic asset' and that 'we will not outsource the security of our hemisphere to anyone else'.

"Nato has been telling Denmark for 20 years that 'the Russian threat must be removed from Greenland'. Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it. Now the time has come, and we will!" Donald Trump writes this on Truth.

Military exercises in cooperation with European states in Greenland will continue ''for a year, maybe two'', the head of the Danish Arctic Command, General Soren Andersen, tells Le Monde newspaper. In the interview published today in the French newspaper, the commander of the Danish forces in Greenland announces that after the ''recognition'' phase, the exercises will continue, probably from March, with ''different capabilities'', including the arrival of ''special forces''. Andersen reveals that his proposal to associate the United States with the exercises has had ''no response''. ''We have been cooperating with the US military for decades and continue to do so today,'' the Danish soldier points out. ''Part of my personnel is deployed on Pituffik Air Base (the US base in Greenland). As far as the military aspects are concerned, nothing has changed'. Andersen does not hesitate, however, to refute US President Donald Trump's claim that Russian 'destroyers and submarines are seen everywhere' around Greenland. ''I have been here in command for two and a half years and I have not seen any Russian or Chinese warships. However, it is essential to point out that we share the fears of many countries about Russia and China and their cooperation. We observe them, not near Greenland, but in the Arctic Ocean. We see Chinese research ships crossing the Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia. Something never seen before'. And again: ''From our point of view, there is no immediate threat to Greenland. However, we are looking at a potential threat: once the war in Ukraine is over - and we hope it ends well for Ukraine - Russia will move some of its capabilities and resources to other areas, perhaps the Baltic Sea, but we expect it to deploy them in the Arctic. For Andersen, it is therefore necessary ''to strengthen our means in order to defend in Greenland but also, of course, as NATO allies, to protect NATO's northern flank''.

US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, on US President Donald Trump's claims on Greenland, stated that "under our constitutional system, Congress must declare war. I don't foresee any scenario where we declare war on Greenland'.

Asked by broadcaster Sky News whether Trump would deploy troops on Greenland territory without congressional approval, Johnson replied: 'Under our constitutional system, Congress must declare war. I don't foresee any scenario where we declare war on Greenland'.

European leaders and their delegations, who will meet US President Donald Trump and US officials at the World Economic Forum starting today in Davos, are tearing up their briefing notes on Ukraine and replacing them with what a senior EU diplomat described to the British newspaper Financial Times as 'carrots and sticks', i.e. how Brussels might react to the threatened tariffs on Greenland, along with offers to ease tensions.

"How can you sit at the table with this man and discuss his security guarantees for Ukraine?" the diplomat explained to the Financial Times, "you cannot trust him unless you suspend reality."

The Danish government has decided not to take part in the work of the World Economic Forum in the context of the escalating Greenland dispute that is shaking transatlantic relations. The event organisers told Bloomberg in a note. "Representatives of the Danish government have been invited this year and any decision on participation is a matter for the government concerned," the note reads. "We can confirm that the Danish government will not be represented in Davos this week. The dispute over Greenland escalated over the weekend after President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on goods from eight Nato allies, prompting the EU to consider imposing tariffs on EUR 93 billion of US goods.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will "try to meet President Trump on Wednesday" in Davos, Switzerland, where both will be at the World Economic Forum. His goal is to "avoid any escalation" on tariffs caused by the tensions between the European Union and the United States over Greenland. "We simply want to try to solve this problem together and the US government knows that we could also react on our side," Friedrich Merz said.

It would be detrimental ''both for Europe and the United States'' to tariffs that US President Donald Trump is threatening to adopt against those countries that oppose his plans for Greenland. This was stated by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, pointing out that 'tariffs are usually paid by those in the country receiving the imports, in this case American consumers'. But tariffs, he added, ''would also, of course, damage our economy, the European economy and, in particular, the German economy''. The Chancellor went on to emphasise that ''talks with the United States must always be based on respect for Greenland's sovereignty and territorial integrity''.

Threats of tariffs are not acceptable because they always carry the risk of an escalation that ends up harming the population. This was stated by German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius in response to a question at a press conference. "I said that threats of tariffs are not helpful and that they always carry with them the danger of escalation. An escalation on the tariffs issue is usually to the detriment of the people, whichever side they are on," Kornelius said. "I don't think any party has an interest in reducing its economic capacity and further burdening public budgets that are already under pressure, as well as a country's economic strength." According to the spokesman, "in this sense, threats of tariffs, even from the US president, are not acceptable".

"The Nobel Peace Prize, I also clearly explained to President Trump, is awarded by an independent committee and not by the Norwegian government." This was stated by Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store in response to the US President's message. The BBC reports. 'Norway's position,' Store reiterates, 'on Greenland is clear. Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark and Norway fully supports the Kingdom of Denmark on this issue'.

EU High Representative Kaja Kallas will today meet with Denmark's Defence Minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, and Greenland's Minister for Foreign Affairs and Research, Vivian Motzfeldt. Poulsen and Motzfeldt will also see NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte today.

A reinforcement of Danish soldiers is leaving for Greenland, Danish TV2 reports. According to the broadcaster, 100 soldiers have already arrived on the island to take part in NATO's 'Arctic Endurance' operation, but now it will be 'a substantial number' arriving at Kangerlussuaq airport, about an hour's flight north from Nuuk. Major General Commander-in-Chief of the Danish Army Peter Boysen is among those who will arrive in Greenland.

President Antonio Costa will convene a special meeting of the European Council on transatlantic relations on Thursday 22 January at 7pm. This was announced by the spokespersons of the European Council Presidency.

Austria's Chief Executive, Christian Stocker, promised confident and decisive EU action on the Greenland case. "The EU must respond to the recent events with reflection, trust and unity. We will clearly focus on dialogue and détente. At the same time, we will defend our values and firmly protect our interests. As the largest single market in the world, the EU can and will act firmly and confidently. We must focus on our economic strength and consider using all available instruments,' Stocker wrote in X. The Austrian Federal Chancellor expressed 'full solidarity and support for Denmark and Greenland', emphasising that 'their sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected by all without exception'.

Donald Trump, who will be in Davos on Wednesday and Thursday, may hold private talks with European leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. This is what the Financial Times writes about the Greenland case that broke out in all its severity last weekend with the announcement of new tariffs by the US president. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is expected in Davos first of all on Tuesday, when she will address the Economic Forum. Immediately afterwards von der Leyen was scheduled to make a stop in Strasbourg, at the EP Plenary, and then return to Davos for talks on Ukraine with Trump and the Voluntary Workers. However, the rising tensions over Greenland and the imminent convening of an extraordinary summit of the 27 on Thursday upset the initial schedule.

'A trade war for Greenland is in nobody's interest'. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said this during a press conference in Downing Street. "The right way to deal with a situation of this gravity is through a calm discussion between allies," the prime minister added, referring to the growing tension between Europe and the US after US President Donald Trump's statements on the island.

Further reading

Greenland, Starmer: 'Trade war is in nobody's interest'

19 January 2026

The Greenlandic sled dog racing federation said that the new US special envoy to the Arctic island has been disinvited to its annual race, as Washington repeatedly threatens to take over the Danish autonomous territory. Jeff Landry had been invited to participate in the race by a private Greenlandic tour operator, an invitation that the Knqk federation had previously described as 'totally inappropriate. Knqk has been informed that the tour agency that had invited US Governor Jeff Landry has unilaterally withdrawn the invitation,' it wrote on Facebook overnight yesterday. "This is reassuring," he added.

US President Donald Trump entrusted the Norwegian ambassador with a letter to the premier of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre. "Dear Jonas," reads the text shared on X by Nick Schifrin, "considering that your country has decided not to award me the Nobel Peace Prize for stopping 8 MORE wars, I no longer feel compelled to think exclusively about peace, although this will always predominate, but now I can think about what is good and right for the United States of America. Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why should it have a 'property right'? There are no written records, it is just that a ship landed there hundreds of years ago, but we also had ships landing there. I have done more for NATO than anyone since its foundation and now NATO should do something for the United States. The world is not safe if we do not have complete and total control of Greenland. Thank you! President DJT'.

Further reading

Trump's letter to Norwegian PM: 'I don't have to think about peace'

19 January 2026

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said that a compromise with US President Donald Trump over Greenland is only possible if Washington wants to guarantee its security and not expand US territory. "It depends on Trump. If he wants to expand American territory we can do very little. But if he wants to secure Greenland from the sights of other superpowers we have ample room for intervention,' he said.

BRUSSELS - The willingness to intervene in confronting the aggressive Trump administration is growing among the Ventisette. The US president's announcement that he wants to adopt tariffs of 10% against goods from the countries guilty of wanting to defend Danish sovereignty over Greenland from American aims provoked a lively reaction from the member states. For the time being the diplomatic card prevails, but never before has the EU seemed ready to use strong-arm tactics.

In a communiqué on Sunday 18 January, the President of the European Council António Costa emphasised that there is "unity among the Twenty-Seven on the principles of international law, territorial integrity and national sovereignty" with regard to Greenland. At the same time, he confirmed that there is a willingness on the part of the member states to defend themselves 'against any form of coercion'. President Costa will organise an extraordinary summit within the week, possibly on Thursday 22 January.

Faced with Donald Trump's threat to impose tariffs on Greenland, European leaders are converging on a strategy of dialogue without, however, ruling out possible retaliation. The New York Times reports this, pointing out that the Europeans are still hoping to resolve the situation through dialogue, even though the discussions have so far proved to be essentially futile.

Giorgia Meloni returns to the role of bridge between the two sides of the Atlantic. "The forecast of an increase in tariffs against those nations that have chosen to contribute to the security of Greenland is a mistake and I do not share it," the premier premised at the press point convened with Italian reporters present in Seoul. She then revealed that she had heard from Donald Trump, because - she explained - there was "a problem of understanding and communication" on the initiative of the eight European countries that decided to send soldiers to the Arctic as part of the Arctic Endurance exercise (Germany, France, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Norway, Finland and the Netherlands). "It should not be read as 'anti-American'," says the premier. We must 'resume dialogue and avoid escalation'.

Canada is considering sending its soldiers to Greenland for military exercises with NATO allies. Canadian media report this, citing sources close to Mark Carney's government. Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on European countries that oppose the US takeover of Greenland and sent troops to the island.

US President Donald Trump reiterated his intention to take Greenland to remove what he called the Russian threat, accusing Denmark of taking no action. "Nato has been telling Denmark for 20 years that it must remove the Russian threat from Greenland. Unfortunately, Denmark has not been able to do anything. Now is the time and it will be done," Trump wrote on Truth Social. Previously, the Russian Foreign Ministry had stated that neither Russia nor China had ever claimed Greenland, despite claims from Washington.

European capitals are considering hitting the US with tariffs worth EUR 93 billion or restricting American companies' access to the European market in response to Trump's threat to Nato allies. The Financial Times reports this, citing sources. The retaliatory measures would be designed to give European leaders clout ahead of meetings with the US president at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, officials involved in the preparations said.