Military invasion 'can't be ruled out,' Greenland's prime minister says amid US threats
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Greenland must start preparing for the possibility of a military invasion, even though the scenario remains unlikely, the island's prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said on Jan. 20.
"It's not likely there will be a military conflict, but it can't be ruled out," Nielsen said during a press conference in Nuuk.
President Donald Trump has pressed Danish and Greenlandic authorities to sell the strategically important island to the U.S., not ruling out the use of military force and threatening tariffs on eight European countries opposing the move.
Nielsen spoke at the press conference beside Greenland's Finance Minister Mute B. Egede, who said local authorities are reviewing civil preparedness guidelines, which could include recommendations for households to store food for five days.
Greenlandic officials have also stressed that as part of Denmark, Greenland remains NATO territory.
The U.S. president has accused Copenhagen of not investing sufficiently into the island's defenses, claiming this renders it vulnerable to a Chinese or a Russian takover.
Greenland, home to about 56,000 people, already hosts a U.S. military base and has grown in strategic importance as Arctic ice melt opens new shipping routes and access to natural resources.
The dispute has caused the most significant rupture in transatlantic relations in decades, as Western officials warn that any attempt to coercively seize Greenland would be the end of NATO.
Trump has only sharpened his rhetoric toward European allies on social media earlier this week, sharing AI-generated pictures of European leaders sitting in the Oval Office and looking at a map where Greenland and Canada have been painted over with an American flag.
While Denmark is reinforcing its military presence in Greenland, the EU has started preparing a response to Trump's threats to impose up to 25% tariffs on select NATO allies.
