US President Donald Trump has ridiculed Denmark’s attempts to defend Greenland with additional patrols including two extra dog sleds as he insisted America would take control of the strategically crucial Arctic island.
Denmark’s defence minister has conceded that the Nordic country has not done enough to protect its autonomous territory of Greenland, but revealed plans to spend $1.5bn on two new inspection ships, two drones and two dog sled patrols after Trump renewed his interest in the island.
“I do believe Greenland, we’ll get — because it really has to do with freedom of the world. It has nothing to do with the United States, other than we’re the one that can provide the freedom. They [Denmark] can’t. They put two dog sleds there two weeks ago, they thought that was protection,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One this weekend.
Trump held a 45-minute phone call with Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen last week, which five current and former senior European officials described to the Financial Times as fiery and confrontational.
The officials said the Danish government was in “crisis mode” after Trump took the unprecedented step of refusing to rule out military action to take territory from a Nato ally and threatened targeted tariffs against it. The US already has the sole military base in Greenland, in the north of the island.
Denmark’s military presence on Greenland is currently limited to an Arctic Command of just 75 people and equipment consisting of four ships, a surveillance plane and several dog sled patrols.
