Denmark to summon US ambassador over alleged increased spying in Greenland

The Danish government plans to summon the acting US ambassador to Denmark for a meeting after a report was published in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that Washington is seeking to increase spying efforts in Greenland, a self-governing territory belonging to the Kingdom of Denmark that the Trump Administration has expressed interest in annexing to the United States, citing concerns about the island's security and the Arctic.

Lars Lokke Rasmussen, the European country's foreign minister, expressed concern over what he read in the WSJ article. "We do not spy on our friends," the official told reporters during an informal meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Warsaw, Poland, Reuters reported.

Rasmussen added that the Danish government will summon the acting US ambassador to Denmark to confirm this information, which he called "disturbing."

What does the WSJ report point out?

In its report, the WSJ, which cited two unnamed sources, argued that Washington is stepping up its intelligence-gathering efforts on Greenland, involving its spy apparatus in President Donald Trump's campaign to seize control of the island.

Trump, it should be noted, has not ruled out the possibility of annexing Greenland to the United States by force.

However, both Danish and Greenlandic authorities have stated that only Greenlanders can decide the future of the territory.