Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen attends a press conference at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Jan. 28, 2025.
Nadja Wohlleben | Reuters
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned President Donald Trump to stop threatening to acquire Greenland just a day after the U.S. carried out a military operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
“The Kingdom of Denmark — and thus Greenland — is part of NATO and is therefore covered by the alliance’s security guarantee. We already have a defense agreement between the Kingdom and the United States today, which gives the United States wide access to Greenland,” Frederiksen said Sunday, in a statement.
“I would therefore strongly urge the United States to stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people who have said very clearly that they are not for sale,” she said.
The warning from Frederiksen comes after Trump was quoted by The Atlantic magazine, saying, “We do need Greenland, absolutely.”
Trump ordered a military operation over the weekend that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife. The pair has been brought to the U.S. on drug-related charges.
The operation came after months of U.S. military buildup and threats against Venezuela, which the Trump administration claims is complicit in trafficking drugs to the U.S.
The move to topple Maduro led to speculation that Trump’s other territorial ambitions could be obtained by force.
Katie Miller, the wife of top White House aide Stephen Miller, posted to X a map of Greenland covered with an American flag with the caption “SOON,” shortly after Maduro was captured.
Trump has long mused about acquiring Greenland, the mineral-rich and self-governing territory of Denmark. Last month, he appointed Louisiana’s GOP Gov. Jeff Landry special envoy to Greenland. Trump has also openly spoken about making Canada, an independent nation, the 51st state of the U.S.
Greenland and Canada have both repeatedly rebuked Trump’s advances.