Congressional delegation in Denmark says Greenland should be seen as a U.S. ally, ‘not an asset’

A bipartisan US Congressional delegation sought to reassure Denmark and Greenland of their support following President Trump’s threat to punish the countries with tariffs if they did not support the US takeover of the strategic Arctic island.

Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska, said Greenland should be seen as an ally of the United States, “not an asset”, while Senator Chris Coons said he wanted to de-escalate the situation.

“I hope that the people of the Kingdom of Denmark will not abandon their trust in the American people,” Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, said in Copenhagen, adding that the United States respected Denmark and NATO “for everything we have done together.”

Their comments contrasted with those coming from the White House. Mr. Trump has been talking about a takeover of Greenland by the United States for months, emphasizing the strategic location of the island. He has sought to justify his calls for a U.S. takeover by repeatedly asserting that China and Russia have their own designs on Greenland, which holds vast untapped reserves of critical minerals.

The Trump administration has not ruled out taking the island by military force, and on Friday, Mr. Trump threatened to increase tariffs on any countries that “do not accept” his desire to annex Greenland.

“I could impose tariffs on countries if they don’t accept Greenland, because we need Greenland for our national security. So I can do that,” he said.

This strategy has met with strong resistance from officials in Greenland, Denmark and across Europe.

Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Prime Minister of Greenland said earlier this week, “we choose Denmark,” and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said a U.S. takeover would effectively mean the end of NATO.

“This undermines NATO at a time when our adversaries seek to profit from division,” Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire, said in Denmark.

European leaders have insisted that it is solely up to Denmark and Greenland to decide on issues regarding the territory, and Denmark said this week it was increasing its military presence in Greenland in cooperation with its allies.

“There is virtually no better ally of the United States than Denmark,” Coons said. “If we do things that make the Danes question whether we can be counted on as NATO allies, why would any other country seek to be our ally or believe in our representations?”

Earlier this week, the the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland met this week in Washington with US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

This meeting did not resolve the deep differences, but nevertheless resulted in an agreement to create a working group – on the objectives of which Denmark and the White House then displayed very divergent public views.

And as this fight in the Arctic for Greenland’s future intensifies, many of its approximately 60,000 residents are afraid.

“The Americans used to be the good guys; they helped us, but now they’re suddenly our enemies and it’s a shock,” said Liv Aurora Jensen.

Thousands of people marched in Copenhagen on Saturday afternoon, many flying the Greenland flag, in support of the self-governing island. Others held signs with slogans such as “Make America Smart Again” and “Hands Off.”

“This is important for the whole world,” Danish protester Elise Riechie told The Associated Press as she waved the Danish and Greenlandic flags. “There are many small countries. None of them are for sale.”

Other rallies were planned in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, and elsewhere in the Danish kingdom.