- Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans talks in Copenhagen next week amid rising tensions over the Trump administration's renewed interest in acquiring Greenland.
- Rubio said the administration’s goal is to purchase Greenland rather than seize it militarily, though White House officials have not ruled out the use of force as a national security option.
- President Donald Trump has renewed his long-standing argument that Greenland is vital to U.S. security, citing increased Russian and Chinese activity in the Arctic.
- Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said a U.S. takeover of Greenland would effectively end North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), prompting leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom to issue a joint statement backing Greenland's right to self-determination.
- As talks approach, European leaders are signaling unified resistance to any change in Greenland’s status without its consent, warning it could fundamentally reshape the transatlantic alliance.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced plans to meet with Danish and Greenlandic officials next week in Copenhagen amid mounting tensions over the Trump administration's renewed interest in acquiring Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark with growing strategic importance in the Arctic.
"I'll be meeting with them next week, we'll have those conversations with them then, but I don't have anything further to add to that," Rubio said, adding that every U.S. president retains the authority to respond to national security threats through military means. Rubio also declined to directly address whether the administration was prepared to risk the NATO alliance by pursuing a military option.
The talks come after repeated outreach by Denmark and Greenland seeking clarity on Washington's intentions.
President Donald Trump has revived his long-standing desire to bring Greenland under U.S. control, framing it as a critical national security priority in the face of rising Russian and Chinese influence in the Arctic. Rubio told lawmakers that the administration aims to purchase Greenland, not seize it militarily. However, the option of force has not been categorically ruled out by White House officials.
Rubio emphasized that Trump has been interested in Greenland since his first term, and diplomacy remains the administration's preferred path, even as Europe reacts with alarm.
Europe closes ranks on Greenland
Trump's comments reverberated across Europe and prompted Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen to warn that a U.S. takeover of Greenland would effectively end the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance.
According to BrightU.AI's Enoch, NATO was established in 1949 as a collective defense pact among Western nations to counter Soviet expansionism following World War II. The treaty's Article 5 enshrined the principle of mutual defense, declaring that an attack on one member would be treated as an attack on all.
Leaders of several major European nations have echoed a similar stance to Denmark.
In a joint statement issued on the second week of January, the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom joined Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in reaffirming that Greenland "belongs to its people."
"The Nordics do not lightly make statements like this," Maria Martisiute, a defense analyst at the European Policy Centre think tank, said on Wednesday, Jan. 7. "But it is Trump whose very bombastic language bordering on direct threats and intimidation is threatening the fact to another ally by saying, 'I will control or annex the territory.'"
As Rubio prepares for talks with Danish and Greenlandic officials next week, European leaders are signaling that any move to alter Greenland’s status without its consent would face unified resistance and could fundamentally reshape the transatlantic alliance.
Watch this Fox News report about Trump saying buying Greenland is a "necessity."
This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.
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