Mette Frederiksen of Denmark and Jens-Frederik Nielsen of Greenland have issued a joint statement to demand respect for their borders after America appointed a US envoy to Greenland.
06:31, 23 Dec 2025Updated 06:33, 23 Dec 2025
Leaders in Greenland and Denmark have issued a joint statement directed at Donald Trump, demanding respect for their borders, after the US president appointed a special envoy to Greenland in his latest steps in his campaign to acquire the country.
The US President has long insisted the move would help boost international security and, in March, he suggested it would be a simple process for his nation to acquire the territory. However, Mr Trump has since faced a fierce attack from Greenland with its defiant Prime Minister blasting the world leader for his tactics.
Prime ministers Mette Frederiksen of Denmark and Jens-Frederik Nielsen of Greenland have demanded respect for their borders on Monday, December 22 after Donald Trump appointed a special envoy to the largely self-governing Danish territory, which he has said repeatedly should be under US control.
“We have said it very clearly before. Now we say it again. National borders and the sovereignty of states are rooted in international law … You cannot annex other countries,” Mette Frederiksen and Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a joint statement.
The two leaders added that “fundamental principles” were at stake. “Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders, and the US should not take over Greenland,” they said. “We expect respect for our common territorial integrity.”
Trump, 79, appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry to serve as the US special envoy to Greenland, a measure he believes will represent a huge advance in securing the island. Trump said on Monday: "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."
Landry, in a post on X, formerly Twitter, thanked the US president for the appointment, saying: "It's an honour to serve ... in this volunteer position to make Greenland a part of the U.S. This in no way affects my position as Governor of Louisiana!" Landry took office as governor in January 2024. His term ends in January 2028.
Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs Lars Lokke Rasmussen told his nation in a TV broadcast on Monday he would summon US ambassador Kenneth Howery to the foreign ministry in the coming days “to get an explanation”.
Rasmussen said he was “deeply upset by this appointment of a special envoy”, and “particularly upset” by Landry’s statement, which he said Denmark had found “completely unacceptable”.
He added: “As long as we have a kingdom in Denmark that consists of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland, we cannot accept that there are those who undermine our sovereignty.”
The US special envoy appointment has also ruffled feathers in the European Union, with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Antonio Costa both said on Monday. “Territorial integrity and sovereignty are fundamental principles of international law. These principles are essential not only for the European Union, but for nations around the world,” they posted on X.
They also said that the European Union stands “in full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland”.
Swedish foreign minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said that "Sweden stands wholeheartedly behind its neighbour" and "will always stand up for international law".
Norwegian foreign affairs minister Espen Barth Eide added Norway's support to the pile, commenting: "Respect for sovereignty, integrity and the inviolability of borders is the foundational principle of international law, and must be upheld by all states without exception."
Trump, in the early months of his return to the White House, repeatedly called for US jurisdiction over Greenland, and has not ruled out military force to take control of the mineral-rich, strategically located Arctic island.
But Greenland, with less than 60,000 residents, is an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark and holds strategic importance for the Kingdom of Denmark, NATO, and the EU. It is a socially progressive island, where like in Denmark, education and healthcare are free and the island is rich in minerals.
Days after becoming Prime Minister in the spring, former scientist Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said: "President Trump says that the United States 'will get Greenland.' Let me be clear: The United States will not get it. We do not belong to anyone else. We decide our own future."
But then in August, Danish officials summoned the US ambassador following a report that at least three people with connections to Trump had carried out covert influence operations in Greenland.
Earlier this year, Vice President JD Vance visited a remote US military base on the island and accused Denmark of underinvesting there. Trump has said that Greenland is crucial for US security and hasn’t ruled out taking the island by military force, even though Denmark is a NATO ally of the US.
Denmark and Greenland have said the island is not for sale and condemned reports of the US gathering intelligence there. The US push for Greenland is also opposed by Russia and much of Europe. The Denmark Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Landry's appointment.
The Danish Defence Intelligence Service said in a report earlier this month that the United States is using its economic power to “assert its will” and threaten military force against friend and foe alike.