By Steve Holland
PALM BEACH, Florida/COPENHAGEN, Dec 22 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump reasserted on Monday that the United States needs Greenland for its national security and said a special envoy he appointed to the Arctic island would "lead the charge."
Trump named Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry on Sunday as his special envoy to Greenland, drawing renewed criticism from Denmark and Greenland over Washington's interest in the mineral-rich Arctic island.
Trump has advocated for Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory, to become part of the United States, citing its strategic importance and mineral resources. Landry, who took office as governor in January 2024, publicly supports the idea.
"We need Greenland for national security, not for minerals ... If you take a look at Greenland, you look up and down the coast, you have Russian and Chinese ships all over the place. We need it for national security. We have to have it," Trump told reporters in Palm Beach, Florida, adding that Landry wanted to "lead the charge."
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen earlier said in a joint statement that Greenland belongs to Greenlanders.
"You cannot annex another country. Not even with an argument about international security," they said. "Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders and the U.S. shall not take over Greenland."
Landry, in a post on X, thanked Trump: "It's an honor to serve ... in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the U.S. This in no way affects my position as Governor of Louisiana!"
The Trump administration put further pressure on Copenhagen on Monday, when it suspended leases for five large offshore wind projects being built off the East Coast of the U.S., including two being developed by Denmark's state-controlled Orsted.
GREENLAND'S STRATEGIC VALUE
Greenland, a former Danish colony with a population of about 57,000, has the right to declare independence under a 2009 agreement but remains heavily reliant on fishing and Danish subsidies.
Its strategic position between Europe and North America makes it a key site for the U.S. ballistic missile defence system, while its mineral wealth has heightened U.S. interest in reducing reliance on Chinese exports.
After Trump made the appointment on Sunday, Greenland's Nielsen commented on Facebook: "We have woken up again to a new announcement from the U.S. president. This may sound big, but it does not change anything for us. We decide our own future."
DIPLOMATIC TENSIONS ESCALATE
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Monday he would summon U.S. Ambassador Kenneth Howery, who had pledged "mutual respect" during a recent visit to Greenland.
"Out of nowhere, there is now a special U.S. presidential representative, who, according to himself, is tasked with taking over Greenland. This is, of course, completely unacceptable," Rasmussen told TV2.
Denmark has sought to repair strained ties with Greenland over the past year, while also trying to ease tensions with the Trump administration by investing in Arctic defence to address U.S. criticisms about inadequate security.
"It is a difficult situation that our allies for a lifetime are putting us in," Prime Minister Frederiksen said in an Instagram post.
Mikkel Vedby Rasmussen, a political science professor at the University of Copenhagen, told Reuters: "This appointment shows that all the money Denmark has invested in Greenland, in the defence of the Arctic, and all the friendly things we have said to the Americans, have had no effect at all."
(Reporting by Siddharth Cavale in New York, Arathy Somasekhar in Houston and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen in Copenhagen; additional reporting by Anusha Shah in Bengaluru, Soren Sirich Jeppesen and Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen and Steve Holland in Palm Beach; Editing by Gareth Jones and Howard Goller)
