The White House said Tuesday that the U.S. military is always an option, even as a group of European leaders rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s comments about seeking an American takeover of Greenland, the world’s largest island.
Trump has floated the idea of purchasing Greenland since his first term. Following this weekend’s U.S. military action in Venezuela, he renewed calls for the United States to take over the territory, citing strategic concerns.
“President Trump has made it well known that acquiring Greenland is a national security priority of the United States, and it is vital to deter our adversaries in the Arctic region,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. “The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the U.S. military is always an option at the commander in chief’s disposal.”
The comments marked a shift in tone after Trump’s newly appointed special envoy to Greenland and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller suggested that military action would not be necessary. Asked Tuesday whether he was comfortable with military action in Greenland, House Speaker Mike Johnson said, “No. I don’t think it’s appropriate.”
Leavitt’s statement followed a joint declaration by the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom, who joined Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in reaffirming that Greenland “belongs to its people.”
The statement defended the sovereignty of Greenland, a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark and part of the NATO alliance.
“Greenland belongs to its people,” the statement said. “It is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland.”
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also voiced support for Denmark and Greenland and announced that Canada’s Governor General Mary Simon and Foreign Minister Anita Anand would visit Greenland early next month. Simon is of Inuit descent.
“The future of Greenland and Denmark are decided solely by the people of Denmark,” Carney said, standing alongside Frederiksen at the Canadian Embassy in Paris.
Also Tuesday, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, whom Trump appointed last month as U.S. special envoy to Greenland, said he was not interested in speaking with Danish officials or European diplomats.
“They absolutely have made their position clear,” Landry said.
Instead, he said, he wants to speak directly with Greenland residents.
“I want to talk to people who want an opportunity to improve the quality of life in Greenland,” Landry said during an interview on Fox News Radio.
Landry said he has exchanged emails with Greenlanders who contacted him directly.
“They tell me they like to hunt, they like to fish, they like to have a good time,” Landry said. “I’m like, y’all belong in Louisiana. I’m going to call it culinary diplomacy.”
White House does not budge
Miller said Monday that Greenland should be part of the United States, despite warnings from Frederiksen that a U.S. takeover would effectively end NATO.
“The president has been clear for months now that the United States should be the nation that has Greenland as part of our overall security apparatus,” Miller said in an interview with CNN.
Frederiksen and Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen have firmly rejected Trump’s renewed push for U.S. control. Trump has argued that the United States needs Greenland to counter growing Chinese and Russian influence in the Arctic.
“It’s so strategic right now,” Trump told reporters Sunday.
“Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” he said. “We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it.”
Miller questioned Denmark’s claim to the territory during his interview.
“What is the basis of their territorial claim?” Miller said. “What is their basis of having Greenland as a colony of Denmark?”
At the same time, he said there was no need to consider armed intervention.
“There is no need to even think or talk about this in the context you are asking about, of a military operation,” Miller said. “Nobody is going to fight the U.S. militarily over the future of Greenland.”
Greenland’s strategic importance
Greenland was a colony of Denmark for centuries and became an integral part of the kingdom in 1953. The United States recognized Denmark’s sovereignty over Greenland in the early 20th century.
A 2009 law granting Greenland expanded self-rule also recognized its right to independence under international law, an option supported by a majority of Greenlanders.
The island lies off northeastern Canada, with more than two-thirds of its territory inside the Arctic Circle. Its location has made it strategically important to North American defense since World War II.
The U.S. Department of Defense operates Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland. Built under a 1951 defense agreement with Denmark, the base supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance for the United States and NATO.
Greenland also sits along the GIUK Gap, named for Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom, where NATO tracks Russian naval movements in the North Atlantic.
The island has significant deposits of rare earth minerals used in electronics, batteries and renewable energy technologies. The U.S. Geological Survey has also identified potential offshore oil and natural gas reserves.
Anxiety grows over rhetoric
Danish officials say concern escalated after a social media post over the weekend by Katie Miller, the wife of Stephen Miller and a former Trump administration official.
She posted an illustrated map of Greenland colored like the U.S. flag with the caption “SOON.”
Trump’s remarks Sunday, including telling reporters, “Let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days,” heightened fears in Denmark that the United States was preparing for a rapid intervention.
Frederiksen said Monday that Trump’s statements “should be taken seriously.”
“If the United States chooses to attack another NATO country militarily, then everything stops,” she told Danish broadcaster TV2. “That includes NATO itself and the security that has existed since the end of the Second World War.”
Greenland Prime Minister Nielsen sought to calm tensions, emphasizing cooperation with Washington.
“We are not in a situation where we think there might be a takeover of the country overnight,” he said Monday night. “That is why we are insisting on good cooperation.”
U.S. Reps. Steny H. Hoyer and Blake Moore, co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Friends of Denmark Caucus, urged restraint in a joint statement.
“Sabre-rattling about annexing Greenland is needlessly dangerous,” they said. “An attack on Greenland, a crucial part of that alliance, would be an attack on NATO.”
They noted that Denmark has already granted the United States broad access for military deployments and missile defense infrastructure on the island.
Ulrik Pram Gad, a security expert at the Danish Institute for International Studies, questioned Trump’s depiction of Russian and Chinese activity.
“There are indeed Russian and Chinese ships in the Arctic,” he wrote, “but these vessels are too far away to be seen from Greenland, with or without binoculars.”