Donald Trump says US must gain control of Greenland

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free

Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world

Donald Trump increased pressure on Denmark to cede control of the Arctic island of Greenland to the US, as vice-president JD Vance toured a US military base on the territory.

“For international security, we have to have Greenland. It’s not a question of, ‘Do you think we can do without it?’ We can’t,” Trump said in Washington during Vance’s visit.

The US president, who has put American territorial expansion at the heart of his second term foreign policy, said Chinese and Russian ships were “all over the place” in the waters surrounding Greenland and Denmark could not be relied on to handle it.

Trump said: “Greenland is very important for the peace of the world, not us, the peace of the entire world. And I think Denmark understands it. I think the European Union understands it. And if they don’t, we’re going to have to explain it.”

Vance travelled to the Pituffik Space Base along the north-west coast of the island on Friday, accompanied by his wife Usha, national security adviser Mike Waltz, and Chris Wright, the energy secretary. The trip was scaled back from an original plan for the US delegation to visit Nuuk, the island’s capital, and attend a dogsled race.

Vance told soldiers and reporters at the base: “Our argument is very simple — it’s not with the people of Greenland. It’s really with the leadership of Denmark which has underinvested in Greenland and the security architecture. It really must change.”

He added Greenlanders would be better under the US security umbrella rather than that of Denmark. “We do have to be more serious about the security of Greenland. We can’t just ignore this place. We can’t ignore the Russian and Chinese encroachment of Greenland,” Vance said.

The US vice-president toned down the rhetoric from Trump, who had previously refused to rule out using military force to take the island. “We do not think that military force is ever going to be necessary. We think it makes sense,” Vance said.

He added he expected Greenlanders to choose independence from Denmark, and that there would then be “conversations” with the US.

As he arrived at the military base, Vance told soldiers there: “It’s cold as shit here. Nobody told me.”

Arctic experts say China and Russia have both become much more interested in the far north but there are few visible signs of them close to Greenland. A Chinese company tried to build several airports in Greenland but was replaced after Denmark said it would finance them instead.

Mette Frederiksen, Denmark’s prime minister, has conceded that her country has not spent enough on Arctic security but criticised Vance’s visit — which was reduced from three days to a few hours on the US base — as lacking respect.

Vance’s visit to Greenland came as the island of 57,000 unveiled its new coalition government.

“At a time when we as a people are under pressure, we must stand together,” said Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the new prime minister.

The new government has said it will seek talks with the US and Denmark about its future.