Last week, President Trump called up Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen for the purpose of discussing one thing: the sale of Greenland to the United States.
During the phone call, President Trump made it clear that he is very serious about American gaining control of Greenland (man, I wish audio of that call would be released!)
President Trump’s reasoning is simple.
He wants Greenland as a strategic, valuable asset that would benefit America on the global stage, particularly in relation to Russia and China.
The PM of Denmark has repeatedly said that Greenland is “not for sale” even going so far as to tell President Trump to “f*ck off” over the autonomous territory, which has been owned by Denmark since the early 1800s.
Classy, right?
If you haven’t seen it, here’s that clip:
But now, it looks like things are shaking up…
Multiple outlets are reporting that President Trump’s direct words during the phone call have sent Denmark into full “crisis mode,” with Danish officials “utterly freaked out!”
Take a look:
NEW: Danish officials are "utterly freaked out" & in "crisis mode" after Trump told them he intends to acquire Greenland during a 45-min call.
Trump was firm in his pursuit to acquire Greenland during a call with Denmark's prime minister, according to the Financial Times.
Five… pic.twitter.com/W8PNy34i5Y
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) January 24, 2025
BREAKING: Officials in Denmark are currently PANICKING after President Trump doubled down on his plan to take Greenland during a phone call with their Prime Minister.
“The intent was very clear. They want it. The Danes are now in crisis mode… He threatened specific measures… pic.twitter.com/mbIcjTtfOp
— George (@BehizyTweets) January 24, 2025
More details from The Telegraph:
Denmark is in “crisis mode” after Donald Trump made a direct play for Greenland in a “horrendous” phone call with the country’s prime minister.
The US president spoke to Mette Frederiksen, the Danish premier, for 45 minutes last week and made clear he wanted to place Greenland under American control.
The autonomous Arctic territory has been owned by Denmark since 1814, but Mr Trump thinks it would be a valuable asset in the US’s strategic competition against Russia and China.
Ms Frederiksen told him in their call last week that despite his “big interest”, Greenland was not for sale, the Financial Times reported.
Mr Trump then became “aggressive”, according to the newspaper, and threatened to impose tariffs on Denmark unless Greenland was sold to the US.
ADVERTISEMENTThe call came after Mr Trump refused to rule out using military force to take Greenland in a press conference on Jan 7, arguing that it was a matter of “national security” that the US gained an Arctic base.
Denmark has repeatedly ruled out selling Greenland, and argues that the territory’s 57,000 residents should be allowed to decide their nation’s political future.
A source briefed on the call told the FT that the phone call was “horrendous,” while another said that Mr Trump was “very firm”.
Denmark was now “in crisis” over the dispute, fearing massive tariffs on exports to one of its largest trading partners, said another person briefed on the conversation.
“The intent was very clear. They want it. The Danes are now in crisis mode,” they said.
Ms Frederiksen, who has held crisis talks with major Danish companies in recent days, has also described the US as Denmark’s “most important and closest ally”.
Newsweek added:
President Donald Trump had a “fiery” phone call with Denmark’s Prime Minister last week, putting the NATO ally into “crisis mode,” the Financial Times reported, citing officials briefed on the matter.
ADVERTISEMENTEuropean officials told the FT the call did not go well and that Trump was aggressive and confrontational with his Danish counterpart…
“It was horrendous,” one of the officials told the FT of the call.
Another said: “He was very firm. It was a cold shower. Before, it was hard to take it seriously. But I do think it is serious, and potentially very dangerous.”
The comments shed light on the fact that Denmark didn’t put much weight on Trump’s demand until the phone call, though Frederiksen had previously emphasized that Greenland was not for sale.
The officials briefed on the call said that the Danish leader had offered more cooperation on military bases and mineral exploitation, but Trump was adamant that he wanted the territory.
“The intent was very clear. They want it. The Danes are now in crisis mode,” one source told the FT. Another added: “The Danes are utterly freaked out by this.”
Greenland is home to just 57,000 people, but its natural resources and shipping routes have attracted the president’s attention. He threatened earlier in January to impose tariffs on Denmark if it refused to give up the territory and reportedly brought this up again last week.
Trump’s threats aren’t new; he floated the same idea in 2019. Then, as now, Frederiksen rebuffed the proposal, calling it “absurd.”
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