The prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland will travel to Germany and France this week in a bid to bolster European support amid President Trump’s recent push to take control of the Arctic island.
Denmark’s Mette Frederiksen and Greenland’s Jens-Frederik Nielsen met Tuesday with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin and Wednesday with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, according to their official schedules.
In their Berlin meeting, Mr. Merz made it clear that Germany would “do more for security in the High North within the framework of NATO,” according to a spokesperson for the Chancellor.
Ms. Frederiksen and Mr. Nielsen’s meeting with Mr. Macron appears aimed at clarifying Europe’s role in Greenland’s security following the U.S.-NATO agreement, with the French leader expected to reaffirm his country’s support for Greenland’s sovereignty.
“The three leaders will discuss security challenges in the Arctic and the economic and social development of Greenland, which France and the European Union are ready to support,” a statement from Mr. Macron’s office reads.
The meetings follow weeks of intense rhetoric from U.S. officials, including Mr. Trump, who insisted that the U.S. must control Greenland to ensure the security of the Western Hemisphere.
That rhetoric has softened over the past week after Mr. Trump withdrew his threat to impose up to 25% tariffs on Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland, and ruled out using military force to take over the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
Mr. Trump announced last week that he had reached a deal with NATO leaders to grant the U.S. “total access” to Greenland.. Details of the deal have not been made public.
Following his meeting with Mr. Trump, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he did not raise the question of Denmark’s territorial claims over Greenland. Mr. Trump and his allies have repeatedly questioned Denmark’s claims to the area, arguing that the kingdom’s colonial claims are not valid.
On Monday, Mr. Rutte emphasized the importance of a strong U.S. military presence in the Arctic.
“If anyone thinks here again that the European Union, or Europe as a whole, can defend itself without the U.S., keep on dreaming,” he said.
Ms. Frederiksen and Mr. Nielsen have said that while both nations are open to cooperation with the U.S., Greenland’s territorial integrity is nonnegotiable.
Mr. Trump has floated the idea of the U.S. security sovereignty over the territory that houses its military bases, an idea flatly rejected by Mr. Nielsen. Under the current military agreement between the U.S. and Denmark, Washington can expand its footprint in Greenland only after receiving approval from Nuuk and Copenhagen.
Greenland’s leadership has stated it would be open to a permanent NATO mission on the Arctic island in a bid to ease Washington’s concerns. The White House has repeatedly insisted that Russia and China remain a constant threat in the North Atlantic and that the U.S. needs total control of Greenland to prevent incursions.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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