Greenland’s leaders and residents have hit back at President Donald Trump’s takeover talk, saying they are tired of being treated like a prize to be claimed.
Greenlandic MP Per Berthelsen told the Financial Times: “They are treating us as if we were merchandise in a shop. I have difficulties seeing the difference between the way the Americans are acting towards Greenland, and Russia, where you can see that the interest is to make their [territory] bigger.”
“We are not for sale. We don’t want to be Americans, we want to be Greenlanders,” Berthelsen, a former Greenlandic foreign minister, told the Financial Times.
“I don’t want to live in an American empire,” resident Maja Overgaard said in the same report, while fisherman Helte Johannsen dismissed Trump outright: “I don’t think that Trump knows anything about Greenland.”
Trump has ramped up his threats to take over Greenland after the U.S. kidnapped Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in an unprecedented military move, and said it would run the country during a transition period.
During a press gaggle aboard Air Force One on Sunday, the president was asked whether he was still planning U.S. military action against Greenland, an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
“If we don’t take Greenland, Russia or China will,” Trump said. “And I’m not letting that happen.”
When asked if Greenland could “offer” him anything, he said, “Sure, I’d love to make a deal with them, that’s easier. But one way or the other, we’re gonna have Greenland.”
Trump made a similar threat in a speech to Congress in March.
On Sunday, he clarified his approach: “Look, we’re talking about acquiring, not leasing, not having it short term. We’re talking about acquiring. And if we don’t do it, Russia or China will. And that’s not going to happen when I’m president.”
He repeated the threat Friday, telling reporters, “We are going to do something in Greenland, whether they like it or not,” and added he would “do it the hard way” if a deal could not be reached.
Denmark and Greenland have consistently rejected the idea, warning that U.S. military action could threaten NATO and emphasizing that Greenland is not for sale.
Last week, Greenland’s government and opposition issued a joint statement: “We do not want to be Americans, we do not want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders. The future of Greenland must be decided by the Greenlandic people.”
Greenland, home to around 56,000 people mostly near Nuuk, is largely covered by ice but holds strategic and economic importance. Its location makes it vital to U.S. military early-warning systems, and melting ice has opened access to valuable resources, such as rare-earth minerals, drawing growing international interest.
“It’s not fun being 56,000 people and having these threats—if you can call them that—from a giant like the US,” Masaana Egede, editor of Greenlandic newspaper Sermitsiaq, told the BBC last week.
“The citizens of Greenland are nervous about this, because this is not something that we take lightly.”
A 2025 Verian poll showed that only 6 percent of Greenlanders are in favour of becoming part of the U.S., with 9 percent undecided.
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