“We are a great power, much greater than people even realize. I think they saw that two weeks ago in Venezuela. We saw that in World War II when Denmark fell to Germany after just six hours of fighting and was completely unable to defend either itself or Greenland. The US was then forced to intervene – we did. We felt obligated to commit our own forces to hold Greenland,” he said.
Trump claims that the United States allegedly already owned Greenland, but after the war “returned” it to Denmark.
“How stupid we were to do this. But we did it. How ungrateful they are now,” Trump added.
He demanded immediate negotiations to re-discuss the issue of the US acquisition of Greenland
“Just as we have acquired many territories throughout our history, as many European countries have done, there is nothing wrong with this. It will not pose a threat to NATO. On the contrary, it will significantly strengthen the security of the entire Alliance,” the US President said.
He argues that since Greenland is in the Western Hemisphere, it “belongs” in North America.
Trump has threatened European countries that reject his encroachments on Greenland.
“They have a choice: you can say yes and we will be very grateful, or you can say no and we will remember it,” he said.
At the same time, Trump said that he was not going to use force to seize Greenland, although, according to him, no one would be able to stop the American army if this happened.
Context
Trump has repeatedly said that the United States must get control over Greenland, otherwise it will allegedly be captured by China and the Russian Federation. He also said that the US could use military force to take over Greenland.
Against the backdrop of statements by the American president, a number of countries, including Denmark, Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, The Netherlands and Great Britain sent military personnel to Greenland for reconnaissance purposes in preparation for military exercises. In response, Trump announced on January 17 the introduction duties for a number of European countries.
On the same day, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK released a joint statement in which they noted that such actions by the American president undermine transatlantic relations.
