Donald Trump engaged Denmark premier Mette Frederiksen in a “horrendous” phone call about Greenland “last week” according to The Financial Times.
Five current and former senior European officials briefed on the call said the conversation had gone very badly.
They added that Trump had been aggressive and confrontational following the Danish prime minister’s comments that the island was not for sale, despite her offer of more co-operation on military bases and mineral exploitation…
“The intent was very clear. They want it. The Danes are now in crisis mode,” said one person briefed on the call. Another said: “The Danes are utterly freaked out by this…”
Trump threatened in early January to impose duties on Denmark if it opposed him on Greenland. He also declined to rule out using military force to take control of the island.
As well they should be.
Trump has been threatening to buy Greenland (which is not for sale) since his first term. Now he wants to make Canada the 51st state (it’s not interested). He is also threatening to retake the Panama Canal; his cited reasons are lies.
Earlier this month, Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egede spoke to FOX News:
“We are close neighbors, we have been cooperating in the last 80 years, and I think in the future we have a lot to offer to cooperate with,” Múte Egede said, “but we want to also be clear. We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be a part of the U.S.”
Note that this story has not been picked up by the New York Times, the Washington Post or CNN as of 4:30 pm Pacific. It broke around 10 am Pacific.
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