Trump Vows to Seize Greenland “One Way or the Other”
Donald Trump is pushing for the United States to take over Greenland, telling reporters on Air Force One Sunday that “one way or the other, we’re going to have Greenland.”
Trump has been pushing to take over the Danish territory, located in the north Atlantic Ocean, since his first term in office. Now, emboldened by U.S. military action to depose Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and a lack of pushback from Republicans in Congress, Trump thinks the time is right for this ill-advised venture.
“If we don’t take Greenland, Russia or China will, and I’m not letting that happen,” Trump said, adding that he would love to make a deal with Denmark to prevent military action because “it’s easier,” but refusing to back down from taking the territory by force.
Trump on Greenland: - If USA does not take Greenland, Russia or China will // One way or the other, we are going to have Greenland
— Guy Faulconbridge (@GuyReuters) January 12, 2026
- Trump saved NATO // Maybe NATO would be upset if USA left NATO // Would NATO be there for USA needed it? Not sure it would @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/tOc38cDxSQ
A military seizure of Greenland would threaten the existence of NATO, as Denmark is a signatory to the defense pact along with the U.S. Last week, the leaders of France, Britain, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Denmark, all NATO members, issued a joint statement warning that any changes to the status quo aren’t up to the U.S.
“Greenland belongs to its people. It is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland,” the statement read, with leaders from Canada and the Netherlands also backing it.
But that so far hasn’t deterred the Trump administration, nor has the fact that Greenland’s political parties, including the opposition, remain steadfastly against becoming a territory of the U.S.
“We do not want to be Americans, we do not want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders,” the parties said in their own statement Friday. “The future of Greenland must be decided by the Greenlandic people.”