Trump insists on taking Greenland as Europe shuffles responses: 'The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland'

Donald Trump does not back down: he wants Greenland. In a series of messages in recent hours, one public and one private, the president insisted that the United States must take over the world's largest island because of "national security concerns."

"NATO has been telling Denmark, for 20 years, that 'you have to get the Russian threat away from Greenland.' Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it," the president wrote on Truth Social, assuring that "now it is time." "And it will be done!!!"

'I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant'

A message from the president to Jonas Gahr Støre, prime minister of Norway, transcended this Monday. "The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland," Trump assured in a missive first reported by PBS reporter Nick Schifrin.

In the text, in response to a message from Støre himself proposing a three-way call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb, the Republican insisted that Denmark "cannot protect that land from Russia or China." He also questioned the Danish claim to the semi-autonomous territory, "There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also."

Below is the full letter:

"Dear Jonas: Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America...

Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a “right of ownership” anyway? There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also...

I have done more for NATO than any other person since its founding, and now, NATO should do something for the United States. The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland...

Thank you! President DJT."

E.U. assesses responses, France calls for "economic nuclear weapon"

On Sunday, eight European countries and U.S. allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) doubled down against Trump, pledging Danish sovereignty over the island.

Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Netherlands and Finland sent troops to the island last week, claiming it was a previously scheduled training exercise. Deployment that the Republican described as a "dangerous game" before announcing he will impose tariffs on them "so that this potentially perilous situation end quickly."

The eight countries countered in a statement that their troops posed "no threat to anyone." "Tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral," they also assured before vowing to remain "united and coordinated."

The president of one of them, France's Emmanuel Macron, assured over the weekend that he would turn to the European Union (E.U.), a bloc made up of 27 countries on the continent. Specifically, he maintained that he would ask for the Anti-Coercion Instrument. Known as the "economic nuclear weapon," it allows limiting imports, investments and market access to countries outside the E.U.

Diplomatic sources told AFP that no decision had been taken on the matter for now. According to it, another letter from the bloc is to reactivate retaliations considered before the signing of a trade deal with the U.S. last year worth 93 billion euros on U.S. products.

"Together we stand firm in our commitment to uphold the sovereignty of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark," assured Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission (the E.U.'s executive branch). We will always protect our strategic economic and security interests. We will meet these challenges to our European solidarity with firmness and determination.

U.K. and NATO seek dialogue

For his part, the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, called for the crisis to be resolved through dialogue. The U.K. is also a member of NATO, although not a member of the E.U. since 2020.

"Alliances endure because they are built on respect, and partnership, not pressure," he argued at an urgently called press conference. "That is why I say the use of tariffs against allies is completely wrong."

"We will work with our allies – in Europe, across NATO, and with the United States.

We will keep dialogue open.We will defend international law." the British leader stressed.

The secretary of the Atlantic Alliance, Mark Rutte, also bet on dialogue. Rutte assured that he had talked with Trump on Sunday, and that he hoped to do so again later in the week in Davos.