Denmark's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, has warned that a US military attack on Greenland would spell the end of the Nato alliance and post-second world war security. Her comments follow renewed threats from US President Donald Trump to take over the largely autonomous island, which is a former Danish colony and part of the Danish kingdom.
Frederiksen told Danish TV2: 'If the United States decides to militarily attack another Nato country, then everything would stop – that includes Nato and therefore post-second world war security.' She described Trump's pressure as 'unacceptable' and an 'unreasonable attack on the world community'.
Greenland's prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, issued a stark rebuttal, urging Trump to abandon 'fantasies about annexation' and declaring: 'Enough is enough. No more pressure. No more innuendo. No more fantasies about annexation.' Speaking in Nuuk, Nielsen stressed Greenland is a democratic country and cannot be compared to Venezuela.
The European Union expressed support for Greenland and Denmark. EU foreign policy spokesperson Anitta Hipper said: 'The EU will continue to uphold the principles of national sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders,' particularly when a member state's territory is questioned.
Greenlandic MP Aaja Chemnitz, a member of the Danish parliament, said although an invasion is not imminent, Greenlanders should 'prepare for the worst'. She described Trump's remarks as 'the worst and most serious' of his threats and indicative of a 'new world order'.
