U.S. President Donald Trump (left) gestures and speaks during a bilateral meeting at the Bestepe presidential palace after President Trump arrives to attend the annual North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 7, 2026. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Republican) looks on.
Win McNamee | Getty Images
President Donald Trump on Tuesday renewed his push for the United States to acquire Greenland, suggesting the United States could withdraw all military personnel from Europe in response to continued continental opposition to the issue.
Shortly after arriving in Ankara, Turkey, for a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, President Trump said the island’s territory “should be managed by the United States.”
The 32-nation alliance, which includes Denmark and of which Greenland is a part, was thrown into crisis in January after President Trump demanded that the United States take control of the island territory on national security grounds.
In a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday afternoon Ankara time, President Trump said Europe’s failure to align with his expansionist aspirations “hurts our relationship with NATO.”
“Because Greenland isn’t helping Denmark. Denmark isn’t actually putting money into helping Greenland, but it’s an important part of the United States,” Trump told reporters.
“And you’re surrounded by Chinese ships and Russian ships. That’s not going to happen, the ships, that’s not going to happen,” he said, repeating claims about a foreign military threat to the autonomous island that Greenland experts have denied.
Greenland “should be managed by the United States, not Denmark,” Trump continued. “And when they don’t agree with that, and we’re spending all our money to help relations with Russia, we don’t have to spend money.”
“We will be able to remove all soldiers from Europe,” he said. “Because, as you’ve probably noticed, Europe is a very different place than it was 20 years ago.”
“And they better watch out,” Trump continued, “talking extensively about Europe, about immigration and energy. If they don’t take care of those two things, there won’t be a Europe anymore.”
He then concluded the portion of the meeting that was open to the press.
Working group discussion
President Trump’s comments have thrust Greenland, a vast, sparsely populated and largely frozen Arctic island, back into the geopolitical spotlight.
The US president’s pursuit of Greenland became a major transatlantic issue at the beginning of the year, after President Trump repeatedly insisted that the US needed to acquire Greenland. Greenlandic lawmakers insist the island is not for sale.
President Trump, who did not rule out the possibility of using military force to annex Greenland, suddenly announced in late January that he had formed a “framework for future agreements” with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte regarding the territory.
A working group comprising representatives from the United States, Denmark and Greenland has since met to discuss how to proceed.
Apartment building in Nuuk, Greenland, January 25, 2026.
Sean Gallup Getty Images News | Getty Images
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen reportedly said late last month that he hoped the working group would find a solution by the end of the year.
Asked about President Trump’s recent comments on Greenland, Finnish President Alexander Stubbe told CNBC’s Steve Sedgwick on Tuesday: “Be more Arctic, be more calm. When it comes to Arctic security, we have seven Arctic nations in an alliance.”
He added: “Finland has trained a million soldiers in an arctic environment. We basically live in an arctic environment. Let’s keep that in mind. Let’s continue the process that the Danes, Americans and Greenlanders have been doing.”
