United States President Donald Trump told NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that US control of Greenland is necessary to enhance international security, escalating his campaign to annex the strategic Arctic island. Asked directly about the prospect of annexation, Trump said: "I think it will happen."
"I think it's going to happen. I'm just wondering why I haven't done this before, but I'm sitting here with a person who could be very helpful. You know, we need it for international security, not just security. We have a lot of our own weapons, including cruise missiles around the coast. We have to be careful and we'll talk again."
Trump has made the U.S. annexation of Greenland a major talking point since he took office on Jan. 20. His comments suggested he might want NATO involved in his bid to take control of the island, a semi-autonomous Danish territory.
The comments featured a swift rejection from Greenland's outgoing prime minister.
"The US president has once again expressed his intention to annex us," Mute Egede said in a Facebook post. "Enough is enough."
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the leader of the island's pro-business Demokraatit party, which won Greenland's parliamentary elections on Tuesday, also rejected the comments.
"Trump's statement from the US is inappropriate and only shows once again that we must stand together in such situations ," Nielsen wrote on Facebook.
NATO and the Danish embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (A2 Televizion)
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