‘Only the USA’ can safeguard Greenland against Russia, China, Trump insists
Meanwhile, Donald Trump keeps posting social media updates on Greenland, ramping up pressure on Denmark and Greenland ahead of the talks.
In the latest post, he told Denmark to counter the alleged Russian and Chinese threat to Greenland – only to conclude that “only the USA can” do this.
“Nato: Tell Denmark to get them out of here, NOW! Two dogsleds won’t do it! Only the USA can!!!”
Trump also linked to a news story about a Danish intelligence report, published last month, which warned that “Russia, China and the United States have diverging interests in the Arctic, but all three countries seek to play a greater role in the region.”
The report warned that “the intensifying great power competition in the Arctic has brought significant international attention to the region, particularly with the growing US interest in Greenland and its implications for US national security.”
“The United States’ growing strategic interest in the Arctic reflects an increased prioritization of regional defence. In recent years, it has stepped up military activities and conducted exercises with allies in the region, including Denmark. For the United States, the Arctic represents the first and most crucial line of early warning in the event of a great-power conflict with Russia or China. The radars at Pituffik Space Base play a central role in detecting hostile missiles heading towards the US mainland.”
The report warned that while Russia faces some pressure over its involvement in Ukraine and worsening economic outlook, “its core capabilities in the Arctic remain largely intact,” and it “retains the capability to rapidly deploy fighters and bombers to its Arctic bases,” which would make it “capable of striking western targets across much of the Arctic and the North Atlantic at short notice.”
It said:
“In response to increase US and western activity in the Arctic, Russia will attempt to demonstrate its strength – including in new ways. Russia is expected to act in an increasingly unpredictable and confrontational manner. This could include aggressive responses to western military exercsies in the region, such as hazardous navigation or simulated attacks.”
It also warned that “while China currently has no military presence in the Arctic, it aims to develop an independent capability to operate both surface ships and submarines in Arctic waters within five to ten years.”
“Russia and China are expected to expand their Arctic cooperation in the coming years, despite conflicting interests in the region,” it said.
“The two countries may conduct joint exercises in the Russian Arctic in 2026. For both countries, joint exercises both inside and outside the Arctic would also serve as strategic signalling to the United States and the West. Russia’s willingness to hold joint exercises with China in the Arctic will thus depend on its relationship with the United States.”
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European parliament leaders ‘unequivocally’ condemn US comments on Greenland
Meanwhile, the European parliament leaders issued a statement declaring their “firm” support for Denmark, Greenland and the rules-based international as they “unequivocally” condemned the US ambition to control the semi-autonomous territory.
They stressed that “any attempt to undermine the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland, violates international law and the United Nations Charter.”
They added that “the security of the Arctic is a strategic priority for the European Union, and we are firmly committed to safeguarding it,” calling for “reinforcing European defence capabilities” to ensure security in the Arctic region.
“Decisions concerning Denmark and Greenland belong to Denmark and Greenland alone, in accordance with the relevant constitutional arrangements and agreements between Denmark and Greenland,” they said.
“The European Parliament unequivocally condemns the statements made by the Trump administration regarding Greenland, which constitute a blatant challenge to international law, to the principles of the United Nations Charter and to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a NATO ally. Such statements are unacceptable and have no place in relations between democratic partners.”
The parliamentary leaders also urged the European Commission and the European Council “to define concrete and tangible support to Greenland and Denmark, upholding EU principles and law, international law and the Nato Charter.”
ShareUkraine to declare state of emergency for energy after Russian strikes
In other news, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that “a state of emergency” will be declared in the energy sector, as the country has to deal with the impact of Russian strikes on its critical infrastructure.
He said the consequences of the attacks were “severe” and posing difficulties as the weather conditions were worsening.
“A permanent coordination headquarters will be established to address the situation in the city of Kyiv. Overall, a state of emergency will be declared for Ukraine’s energy sector,” he said after holding a meeting on the situation in the energy sector.
ShareNorway to ‘map further cooperation’ with allies on Greenland, defence minister says
Norway appears to be joining the Greenland exercises, with newspaper VG reporting comments from Norway’s defence minister Tore O. Sandvik that two Norwegian military personnel will be sent to the territory to “map further cooperation between the allies.”
Updated at 12.49 EST
Jakub Krupa
We are expecting a press conference with the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers to take place at some point in the next hour or so.
We will bring you the latest here.
ShareGreenlanders not sure how they would react to potential US invasion
Nordic correspondent
in Nuuk, Greenland
Having finished high school and voted for the first time last year, Aviâja Korneliussen, 19, is part of a generation that has come of age during this unprecedented time of Greenlandic history in which one of the world’s most peaceful populations has come under repeated threat from a military superpower.
Aviâja Korneliussen Photograph: Inesa Matuliauskaite/The Guardian
Korneliussen, who is an artist and works at a museum and a bar, says Trump’s threats are dividing society.
“Before all of his claims it was just an easy life. You had no worries, you were friends with everybody,” she says, eating breakfast in her apartment as the morning fog cleared outside to reveal white mountains. “But now someone has a different idea of how Greenland will be and another has a whole different idea and if they clash you cannot be friends.”
She finds the way people talk about Greenland online, as an object to be traded, dehumanising. Amid the global attention, Indigenous Greenlanders are, Korneliussen says, becoming more open to expressing their Inuk identity, including through Inuit tattoos and art, and separating themselves from Denmark: “The whole idea of being Inuk instead of Qallunaaq, Danish.”
If the US was to invade, Korneliussen thinks there would be a lot of protest, but she is not sure how people – herself included – would react.
“I think I would just lock myself inside and find a way out of here,” she says. But at the same time, she does not want to have to leave her life in Greenland. “It is weird to think about because you don’t want to think about that stuff – like the what ifs and what not. Especially if you have people you care about and it is the land you were born and raised in. The culture that you live every day.”
Many Greenlandic people, Korneliussen says, have guns, so people could try to defend themselves. “But at the same time we are not that type of people to go kill one another.”
Share‘Which way, Greenland man?,’ White House asks in provocative visual
Meanwhile, the official White House account has posted a visual showing what it believes to be the choice facing Greenland (portrayed as, erm, two dog sleds): it can either side with the US and enjoy a bright future or face a storm portrayed as the combined forces of Russia and China.
It asks:
“Which way, Greenland man?”
And here are the first pictures we are getting from Washington, showing the Danish-Greenlandic delegation departing the Eisenhower Building after their talks with the US.
Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen departs the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington DC. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty ImagesGreenland’s foreign minister Vivian Motzfeldt (L) departs the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images
The US representatives are also out.
US vice-president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio depart the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 12.10 EST
Danish broadcaster TV2 is reporting that the Washington meeting has now concluded, after some 50 minutes.
We should hear more about how the talks went later today.
ShareDenmark confirms plans for more permanent, larger military presence in Greenland, says US attack remains ‘unlikely’
Danish defence minister Troels Lund Poulsen is currently briefing the media on the Danish exercise plans “in and around Greenland”.
He largely sticks to what was announced in the original press release (15:23, 15:36).
He confirms, however, that there will be a “more permanent” and larger military presence in Greenland, without confirming which other countries will send their troops there (we know about Sweden so far).
He also says he still considers “unlikely” that a Nato country would attack another member state, and says that any question about the US launching an attack on Greenland remained “highly hypothetical.”
Updated at 11.46 EST
Oh, and here is a photo of the Danish-Greenlandic foreign ministers arriving for their meeting in Washington DC.
Denmark’s foreign minister, Lars Loekke Rasmussen, center, and Greenland’s minister for foreign affairs, Vivian Motzfeldt, center left, arrive to meet vice-president, JD Vance, and secretary of state Marco Rubio at the White House in Washington DC. Photograph: Mads Claus Rasmussen/APShareGreenlanders worry about potential US invasion and lack of preparedness
Nordic correspondent
in Nuuk, Greenland
If US troops were to arrive in Nuuk tomorrow and lay claim to Greenland, many Greenlanders feel they would be powerless. “What could we do?” says Najannguaq Hegelund. “We are like 20,000 in Nuuk. How are we going to go against American troops?”
Nuuk city, Greenland. Photograph: Inesa Matuliauskaite/The Guardian
Over the past couple of years, Joint Arctic Command (JAC), the Danish military forces tasked with protecting the sovereignty of the kingdom of Denmark in the Arctic, has run a preparedness course for young Greenlanders in response to the region’s heightened security situation. But many say they lack basic information on what to do in case of invasion.
Hedvig Frederiksen, 65, and her daughter, Aviaja Fontain, 40, are so worried that they have taken Greenland’s surveillance upon themselves.
“It’s scary,” says Fontain, who is struggling to focus on her university exams because of the geopolitical tension. “She [Frederiksen] keeps looking at the planes because she has a view and I keep on looking at the harbour because I have a view to the harbour.” Frederiksen, who uses flight trackers, recently got a scare when she said she spotted a Hercules plane leaving Pituffik and thought it was coming to Nuuk to invade.
ShareSwedish troops are in Greenland as part of allied deployment for exercises, prime minister says
Meanwhile, Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson has confirmed that Swedish army officers have arrived in Greenland today as part of that European allied deployment to the territory for the upcoming exercises “Operation Arctic Endurance” (15:23).
He said the troops are “part of a group from several allied countries,” and that the decision to send them in was made in response to a Danish request.
ShareUS meeting on Greenland starts – media reports
With a little delay for pleasantries and usual photographs – which I’m sure we will get soon – the proper meeting has now started, Danish broadcaster TV2 said.
Just as the meeting was getting under way, US broadcaster NBC reported that US state secretary Marco Rubio was “tasked with crafting a proposal to purchase the semi-autonomous Danish territory,” which is reportedly seen as “high priority” for US president Donald Trump.
It also carries a $700bn cost estimate, but it’s not entirely clear how it was calculated.
Updated at 10.54 EST
We now also have a picture of US state secretary Marco Rubio arriving at the Eisenhower Building for the talks, so everyone is in.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio (R) arrives at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus ahead of a scheduled meeting with US vice-president JD Vance, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington DC. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 10.49 EST
Small protest outside US embassy in Copenhagen
As the talks get under way in Washington DC, we are also getting pictures from a protest outside the US embassy in Copenhagen.
A protester waves a Greenlandic flag during a demonstration under the motto “Greenland is for Greenlanders” in front of the US embassy in Copenhagen. Photograph: Thomas Traasdahl/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP/Getty ImagesProtesters with a Greenlandic flag during a demonstration under the motto “Greenland is for Greenlanders” in front of the US embassy in Copenhagen. Photograph: Thomas Traasdahl/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP/Getty ImagesProtesters with Greenlandic flags attend a demonstration under the motto “Greenland is for Greenlanders” in front of the US embassy in Copenhagen. Photograph: Thomas Traasdahl/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP/Getty ImagesShare
Updated at 10.57 EST
And here is a snap of US vice-president JD Vance making his way to attend the Greenland meeting.
US vice-president JD Vance (R) arrives at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus ahead of a scheduled meeting with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt in Washington DC. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty ImagesShareFear – but little preparation – as threat of US invasion looms over Greenland
Miranda Bryant
Nordic correspondent
in Nuuk, Greenland
When she was living in Denmark, the seemingly unshakeable safety of Greenland was a comforting source of reassurance for Najannguaq Hegelund. Whenever there was any instability in the world, she would joke with her family: “Well we will just go to Greenland, nothing ever happens in Greenland.”
Najannguaq Hegelund, like others in Greenland, is wondering whether to flee to Denmark in case of a US invasion. Photograph: Inesa Matuliauskaite/The Guardian
But in the past two weeks – during which Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened military action on the largely autonomous Arctic territory the US president claims he “needs” for national security purposes, despite it being part of the Danish kingdom – Hegelund, 37, has realised this is suddenly no longer true.
“Look where we are today,” she says, laughing incredulously. “It’s just so crazy.”
Like many of Greenland’s 57,000-strong population, Hegelund has found herself worrying about evacuation plans in case of US invasion, whether or not to flee to Denmark beforehand and fielding questions from her children about becoming American.
Others said they have been watchful of the skies and seas around Greenland, tracking US planes on flight trackers and even discussing plans on how best to respond if they were captured. Many said they were suffering from anxiety and struggling to sleep.