In Denmark, US lawmakers contradict Trump on Greenland

A bipartisan delegation of U.S. lawmakers, including senior members of the House and Senate, traveled to Copenhagen to reassure the leaders of Denmark and Greenland, and their increasingly anxious citizens that most Americans do not support President Donald Trump’s plan to annex or buy Greenland, let alone military action against a fellow NATO ally.

“You are hearing from the executive branch,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) told reporters in the Danish capital. “The Congress also has a role.”

Trump on Saturday said he would impose tariffs of an additional 10 percent on imports from eight European nations for failing to back his bid to acquire the autonomous territory of the kingdom of Denmark. Posting on Truth Social, he said he would raise the tariffs on products from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and the United Kingdom to 25% in June and keep them in place until he prevailed.

Thousands gathered Saturday in Denmark for “Hands-off Greenland” protests. Gatherings were also planned for Nuuk, the territory’s capital.

On Capitol Hill, Democrats and some Republicans have fumed at the Trump administration’s escalating threats against Greenland, rhetoric they’ve called pointless and potentially corrosive to the NATO alliance. Some have drafted legislation aimed at blocking the use of force against the territory.

In Copenhagen, U.S. lawmakers met with counterparts in the Danish parliament on Friday to “lower the temperature,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said. They made clear that Trump’s position was being challenged back home.

“It is important to underscore that when you ask the American people whether or not they think it is a good idea for the United States to acquire Greenland, the vast majority — some 75% — will say we do not think that that is a good idea,” Murkowski said at a news conference Friday. “This senator from Alaska does not think it is a good idea.”

“Greenland needs to be viewed as our ally, not as an asset,” Murkowski added.

Trump has insisted that the United States must control Greenland for its national security. The world’s largest island is strategically located between North America, Europe and the Arctic and rich in rare earth minerals. Trump has said Russian and Chinese warships threaten the territory.

Many European leaders, including major NATO allies, have voiced alarm and dismay over Trump’s rhetoric.

Coons said Trump was exaggerating the threat to U.S. national security. “Are there real pressing threats to the security of Greenland from China and Russia,” Coons asked. “No. Not today. Are there real opportunities for us to partner through NATO to contribute to Arctic security? Yes. And if we ask respectfully and we plan together, we can achieve that goal.”

Denmark says the territory, home to 57,000 people, is not for sale. European leaders have said decisions about Greenland’s future should be made only by Denmark and Greenland.

The U.S. lawmakers met Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen and Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen.

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, a former NATO secretary-general and former Danish prime minister, told Danish television that Trump’s threats had shaken his view of the United States. “It’s a difficult development,” Rasmussen said. “I have always looked up to the U.S.A. as a champion of the free world.”

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), speaking on the Senate floor last week, said he was “sick of stupid” and urged the president to fire advisers who were pushing a Greenland takeover. He also traveled to Copenhagen.

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the chair of the powerful Senate defense appropriations subcommittee, said this week that the effort risked “incinerating the hard-won trust of loyal allies in exchange for no meaningful change in U.S. access to the Arctic.”

Other Republicans, however, have downplayed the administration’s threats. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said earlier this month that military action is “not something that anybody’s contemplating seriously at this point.”

But some lawmakers are trying to prevent the administration from attacking Greenland by force.

Murkowski and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), also a member of the delegation, introduced a bill this week that would withhold government funding for any operation aimed at exerting control over the territory of a NATO ally.

“I hope it’s ultimately not necessary, but we are operating in times where we’re having conversations about things that we never thought even possible,” Murkowski told reporters Wednesday.

Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) said he had drafted a war powers resolution to block the use of military force. And Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Don Bacon (R-Neb.) introduced a symbolic resolution with Murkowski and Gallego on Thursday to reaffirm the U.S. government’s “respect for the sovereignty of the kingdom of Denmark, including Greenland.”

The lawmakers’ trip to Denmark was intended as a show of support for the NATO ally. Several lawmakers expressed gratitude to Denmark for its long-standing alliance with the U.S., including sending troops to support the U.S. war in Afghanistan.

In Iceland, 5,000 people signed an online petition to protest Billy Long, Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to the Arctic nation. The former congressman joked about Iceland becoming the “52d state” and that he might be its governor. Trump has said Canada should become the 51st state.

Long told the Arctic Today news site that he apologized for the remarks, which he said were made jokingly in reference to other lighthearted banter about Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R), Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, becoming governor of Greenland. “They were kidding about Jeff Landry being governor of Greenland and they started joking about me and if anyone took offense to it, then I apologize,” Long told Arctic Today.