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US President-elect Donald Trump's idea that Greenland be placed under the control of the United States has been opposed by the US Secretary of State and other leaders in Europe.
Trump made it clear again this week that he wants the semi-autonomous territory of Denmark to come under US control and said he would not rule out using military force to achieve it.
"We need Greenland for national security purposes," Trump said.
However, outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the new US president's intentions are likely to be nothing more than words.
"The idea expressed about Greenland is not good, of course," said Blinken during a visit to Paris.
"Perhaps more important is, of course, the idea that this will not happen. Therefore, maybe we shouldn't waste too much time talking about it," he said.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot also ruled out deploying US forces against Denmark, which is a US ally in the NATO military alliance.
However, Barrot warned that Europe should prepare for a period of turbulence in the future.
"Does anyone think the United States will invade Greenland? The answer is 'no'", said the French minister.
"But do we think we are entering a period where the law of the fittest is returning? The answer is 'yes'," he added.
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said she does not believe the United States will use military or economic power to take control of Greenland and has called on the US to behave more "respectfully towards the people of Greenland".
In Germany, Chancellor Olaf Scholz stressed on Wednesday that the principle of the inviolability of borders applies to every country, no matter how powerful, reacting to Donald Trump's comments without mentioning the president-elect by name.
"Borders should not be changed by force," said Scholz.
Greenland, which is part of NATO through Denmark's membership, is of strategic importance to the US military and its ballistic missile early warning system, as the shortest route from Europe to North America passes through the island. Arctic.
The US military has a permanent presence at the air base, Pituffik, in northwest Greenland.
The United States has expressed interest in expanding its military presence, including deploying radars there to monitor the waters between the island, Iceland and Britain, which are gateways for Russian navy ships and nuclear submarines.
Greenland, the world's largest island, has been part of Denmark for 600 years, although its 57,000 inhabitants now govern their own internal affairs.
Greenland's relations with Denmark have been strained recently due to allegations of mistreatment of Greenlanders during the colonial period.
The island's prime minister, Mute Egede, has declared that the island is not for sale and, in his New Year's speech, has intensified efforts for independence, Reuters news agency reported.
Denmark, for its part, has said that the fate of the territory can only be decided by the citizens of Greenland themselves.
"We fully accept that Greenland has its own ambitions. If they come true, Greenland will become independent, but not with ambitions to become a federal state in the United States," said Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen.
He told reporters that the increased concerns of the United States about security in the Arctic are legitimate, due to increased Russian and Chinese activity in the region.
"I don't think we're in a foreign policy crisis," Rasmussen said. "We are open to a dialogue with the Americans on how we can cooperate even more closely than now, to ensure that the American ambitions are fulfilled"./ REL
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