Asger Risom
New prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen issues blunt rebuke as U.S. intensifies pressure
Greenland’s newly appointed prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, firmly rejected President Donald Trump’s calls to bring the Arctic island under U.S. control, signaling a swift and public rebuke to what many in the region see as neocolonial overreach.
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Nielsen responded to Trump’s recent comments on NBC News in which the president declared, “We will get Greenland. 100%,” and implied annexation might occur without military force, though “all options are on the table.”
“I’ll be clear: The United States will not get Greenland,” Nielsen wrote, as reported by HotNews.ro. “We do not belong to anyone else. We decide our own future.”
U.S. Pressures and Nordic Pushback
Tensions escalated following last week’s visit by U.S. Vice President JD Vance to the American Pituffik Space Base in northern Greenland. During his remarks, Vance criticized Denmark’s role in managing the island’s security, claiming the country has underinvested in protecting both the military installation and Greenland’s population from geopolitical threats, particularly from Russia and China.
“The message to Denmark is simple: You haven’t done a good job for the people of Greenland,” Vance said. He also suggested Greenland would be safer and better served under U.S. protection.
Vance clarified that Washington “respects the self-determination of the Greenlandic people,” but framed U.S. involvement as necessary for global security.
Denmark Responds
Denmark quickly issued a diplomatic response to the Vance visit and Trump’s renewed rhetoric. Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen stated on social media that while Copenhagen welcomes constructive criticism, “we do not appreciate the tone.”
“That’s not how you address close allies,” Rasmussen added.
President Trump has previously floated the idea of acquiring Greenland, citing its strategic location and natural resources, including rare earth minerals. The idea has consistently met with ridicule and firm opposition from both Danish and Greenlandic leaders.
With U.S. interest in the Arctic intensifying and the geopolitical stakes rising, Greenland’s stance makes clear it intends to chart its own path—regardless of outside ambitions.