White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated on 6/1 that controlling Greenland is a national security priority for the United States, aimed at deterring adversaries such as Russia and China.
"The President and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy objective. Deploying the US military is, of course, always an option the commander-in-chief can utilize," she added.
The White House issued the warning after officials from Greenland and Denmark stated they had requested an early meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss the issue. However, the meeting has not yet taken place, despite the Greenlandic and Danish governments making the request "throughout 2025", according to Vivian Motzfeldt, Greenland's foreign affairs leader.
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President Donald Trump in Washington, US on 6/1. Photo: AP |
President Donald Trump in Washington, US on 6/1. Photo: AP
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen believes a meeting with his counterpart Rubio would help resolve "certain misunderstandings". Greenland Premier Jens-Frederik Nielsen affirmed the island is not for sale and only the people of Greenland can decide their own fate.
The UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Poland, along with Denmark, previously issued a joint statement opposing the idea of the US annexing Greenland, emphasizing their commitment to protecting universal principles of "sovereignty, territorial integrity, and inviolability of borders".
"I express my deepest gratitude for this support," Nielsen stated.
Greenland is the world's largest island, located near North America, between the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. The island belongs to Denmark, has a population of 57,000 people, and an area of approximately 2,16 million square kilometers, larger than Mexico and more than three times the size of the US state of Texas.
The island lies on the shortest route from North America to Europe, making it a crucial strategic location for Washington. Greenland possesses abundant mineral resources, most of which are untapped.
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Location of Greenland. Graphic: Britannica |
Location of Greenland. Graphic: Britannica
US President Donald Trump mentioned the idea of annexing the island during his first term and has reiterated this plan multiple times since returning to power last year.
On 4/1, one day after the US conducted a raid in Venezuela and arrested President Nicolas Maduro, Trump further declared the US needs Greenland for defense and that the island "is being encircled by Russian and Chinese warships".
The US President also hinted that a decision regarding Greenland could be made "in about two months", after the situation in Venezuela stabilizes.
Pham Giang (According to AFP)
