- - Denmark ‘deeply upset’ by Trump’s appointment of Greenland envoy who wants island to be part of US

Billy Stockwell, CNNDecember 22, 2025 at 11:18 PM

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A view of Nuuk, Greenland, in March. - Leonhard Foeger/Reuters/FILE

Denmark’s foreign minister said Monday he was “deeply upset” by US President Donald Trump’s appointment of a special envoy to Greenland who declared that he wished to see the island become part of the United States.

“I am deeply upset by this appointment of a special envoy. And I ‌am particularly upset by his statements, which we find completely unacceptable,” Lars Løkke Rasmussen told Denmark’s national broadcaster TV 2, according to Reuters news agency.

Rasmussen said he would summon the US ambassador to Denmark in response to the Trump administration’s move, Reuters reported.

Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen and Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen address journalists in Copenhagen on September 26. - Liselotte Sabroe/AFP/Ritzau Scanpix/Getty Images

On Sunday, Trump announced the appointment of Jeff Landry, the Governor of Louisiana, as ‌special envoy to Greenland. “Jeff understands how essential Greenland is to our National Security, and will strongly advance our Country’s Interests for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Allies, and indeed, the World,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

While thanking Trump for his appointment, Landry said it was an “honor to serve you in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the U.S.” He also said that “this in no way affects” his position as Louisiana governor.

Trump has repeatedly stated that he wants to annex Greenland – a huge, resource-rich island in the Atlantic and self-governing territory of Denmark – claiming that this is needed for American security purposes.

Both Greenland and Denmark, a NATO ally of the US, are staunchly opposed to the idea.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen reiterated their opposition Monday to US plans to take over Greenland, stating “you cannot annex another country. Not even with an argument about international security,” according to Reuters.

“Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders and the US shall not take over Greenland,” they said in a joint statement.

Nielsen said earlier Monday that Trump’s announcement “may sound big, but it does not change anything for us. We decide our own future,” Reuters reported.

US Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance stand with Col. Susan Meyers (L), commander of the US military's Pituffik Space Base, as they tour the base on March 28, 2025 in Pituffik, Greenland. - Jim Watson/Getty Images

Vice President JD Vance made a controversial visit to the island in March, repeatedly claiming that it was vulnerable and that the US had “no other option” than to ramp up its presence there.

In August, the US envoy to Denmark was summoned by the Danish foreign ministry after the country’s public broadcaster reported that several American men had attempted to conduct “influence operations” in Greenland.

Rasmussen said earlier that the new appointment “confirms the continued American interest in Greenland,” Reuters reported. “However, we insist that everyone – including the US – must show respect for the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark.”

Meanwhile, European Union spokesperson Anouar El Anouni said that “preserving the ⁠territorial integrity ​of the Kingdom of Denmark, its ‍sovereignty ‍and the inviability of its borders is essential for the European Union.”

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