Trump insists ‘US needs Greenland’ and ‘anything less is unacceptable’ ahead of high-stakes talks

New York Post ^ | January 14, 2026 | Samuel Chamberlain

[Miami Rebel]

President Trump insisted Wednesday that the US “needs” to take control of Greenland “for the purpose of National Security,” warning that “[a]nything less than that is unacceptable” ahead of key meetings with Danish and Greenlandic officials.

“NATO should be leading the way for us to get it,” Trump said on Truth Social in reference to the world’s largest island. “IF WE DON’T, RUSSIA OR CHINA WILL, AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!"

“Militarily, without the vast power of the United States, much of which I built during my first term, and am now bringing to a new and even higher level, NATO would not be an effective force or deterrent – Not even close! They know that, and so do I. NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES.”

Trump spoke out hours before Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were set to meet Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt to try and resolve a diplomatic furor over the White House’s insistence that the US should annex Greenland, which has been under Danish control for centuries.

[silverleaf]

One Belt project

https://asiatimes.com/2025/01/why-chinas-ice-silk-road-has-trump-up-in-arctic-arms/

5 yr old report but informative
https://www.clingendael.org/pub/2020/presence-before-power/

[DIRTYSECRET]

Objections have to do with a knee-jerk reaction to colonialism. The imperialism factor-cultural as well as economic.

Would Hawaiians have been better off if Captain Cook never discovered the place? Denmark did something with the young Greenlander girls to stop births. These actions were wrong while being thought of as altruistic. I am all over the place here but perhaps the needle can be threaded by guaranteeing nothing changes locally-at least not too fast. New wealth cannot lead to the lure of getting lazy.

[nathanbedford]

Trump's comment might have caused consequences that were very much intended; he might have chalked up a win-win by his lights.

In a stroke, President Trump reduced America to the same moral level as Russia in its invasion of Ukraine. Put another way, President Trump has justified Russia's invasion of Ukraine and elevated the Russians' justification for invasion as a legitimate Causus Belli. That counts as a win-win if his aim was to isolate America.

The effect? The entire moral case that united the Free World for three quarters of a century against evil forces of disorder has been summarily repudiated by the one party most associated with sustaining it.

We shall pay a price.

[silverleaf]

The US military in Greenland is a strategic defense force for North America, not Greenland.

Modern warfare with hypersonic missiles and suborbital loitering nuclear bombs and torpedos, drones launched from multiple platforms, space based comms and weapons, directed energy weapons, undersea vital comm cables, the US taking on shipping LNG across the Atlantic to Europe to replace Russian pipelines……etc etc is not what we faced in the Cold War.

Imagine Chinese “ research” and comms sites on Greenland and in the Arctic monitoring and interfering with our defense against whatever is launched over the Pole.

Trump having seen what was launched on Israel and Ukraine has proposed a “ Golden Dome” defense of North America. Call him a visionary. By geolocation Greenland is bound to be part of the EW and defense network

[MIchaelTArchangel]

Why doesn’t Trump meet with the Inuit people. After all, the leftists claim Denmark stole Greenland from the Inuit people. Buy Greenland from the Inuit and tell the King of Denmark remove all the Danes from that new US territory.

[Justa]

We’ve always paid a price. Manhattan, Louisiana Purchase, Indian peace treaties, Spanish-American War, wars against fascists, wars against Communists, etc. There’s always a cost.

[Kleon]

However, if he uses the U.S. military to annex Greenland, he will be impeached for a third time and likely convicted and removed from office.

They can impeach him, but there's no way he would be removed from office.

[BB62]

“Odd enough that President Trump looks nuts.”

“Looking” and “being” are two VERY different things.

Trump’s track record of being right on the subject of every major media/DemocRAT ‘matter of interest’ is enough to assure me that he doesn’t want Greenland for a Trump hotel or golf course.

Of course, one can always believe the left-wing Danish politicians, who, like their counterparts everywhere, lean towards/are experts at lying & minimizing.

[BB62]

I suggest this assessment gives insight into *part* of the reason Trump is so focused.

https://www.fe-ddis.dk/en/produkter/Risk_assessment/riskassessment/intelligence-outlook-2025/

And of course, even Trump’s rumblings haven’t been cause enough for the Europeans to *act* as a ‘defense’ to Trump’s perceived saber rattling - they’re still just *talking*.

[Gay State Conservative]

Anything less? Good God....that’s a *very* unwise thing to say!

[Gay State Conservative]

I can see how China or Russia controlling Greenland would be a very bad thing. But DJT shouldn’t be saying anything suggesting invasion.

[vmpolesov]

I see, interesting take on the situation

[BB62]

I don’t know that Trump has suggested “invasion”, but regardless, he’s trying to focus the attention of not only our allies, but also our enemies, on the matter of Greenland.

So far, the Euroweenies are, as usual, all talk and no action.

Also as usual, Trump looks far more ahead in time than any of his predecessors - regardless of the subject matter.