Donald Trump: Political Mobilization Against Trump – Greenland and Denmark Resist

Donald Trump: Political Mobilization Against Trump – Greenland and Denmark Resist ife/news.de/stg • 1 hour • 3 minutes reading time Donald Trump: Greenland Fantasy Ensures Unified Response Denmark and Greenland Arm Themselves Against the USA Russia Interferes in the Greenland Conflict with a Targeted Smear Campaign Donald Trump has made no secret of his territorial claims to Greenland. Quite the opposite. The island nation's newly elected government is now responding decisively to Trump's territorial claims. Greenland is strengthening its relations with Denmark in response to "disrespectful rhetoric" from the USA. Newly elected Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen stated today at a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen during an official visit to Denmark: "We are in a foreign policy situation that means we need to move closer together." The statement comes against the backdrop of ongoing tensions with the US government regarding the future of the Arctic island. Nielsen emphasized the need for closer cooperation with Denmark in light of the current diplomatic challenges. The Greenlandic leader's statement signals a clear position in the increasingly strained relationship between the US and the Kingdom of Denmark, to which Greenland belongs as an autonomous territory. Trump's Annexation Plans for Greenland Meet with Resistance - Still US President Trump, meanwhile, remains committed to his plans to make Greenland part of the United States. "We need Greenland for international security. We must have it," the president declared in March. In his efforts to gain control over the world's largest island, Trump has in the past ruled out neither economic nor military coercion. The annexation plans are causing great uncertainty in Greenland and Denmark. A poll shows that a clear majority of the Greenlandic population rejects a US takeover. The Danish government under Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is attempting a diplomatic balancing act: rejecting Trump's demands without alienating the country's most important ally and trading partner. Russian disinformation campaigns play a role in Greenland scandal Danish intelligence has, meanwhile, accused Russia of conducting a disinformation campaign aimed at further escalating tensions between the transatlantic partners. According to a report in the Kyiv Post, Russian actors spread the false report on social media that a Danish MP was seeking Russian help to prevent a US annexation of Greenland. The politician concerned, Karsten Honge, discovered a fake post with his picture and reported it as "fake news." The Danish intelligence service identified the originator as an influencer who had previously "promoted the Russian agenda in Ukraine." This campaign is part of a larger Russian strategy to "sow a rift in transatlantic relations and undermine Western support for Ukraine," according to the intelligence service. A rift within NATO would primarily serve Putin's interests. Denmark reacts to strained relations with Donald Trump Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen also sees positive aspects in Trump's controversial Greenland statements. "Trump is sending a clear signal to Europe that the time is over when one could rely on the US to foot the security bill," Poulsen told the newspaper Politiken in January. He described this "wake-up call" as "liberating in many ways" because it initiates a discussion about Europe's own defense will. The debate is no longer just about "the extent to which we believe the Americans will continue to ensure our security." The Ukrainian ambassador recently made a similar statement on Maybrit Illner on German television. The Danish government under Prime Minister Frederiksen faces the difficult task of rejecting Trump's territorial claims without jeopardizing relations.