Danish PM insists US cannot annex Greenland

JAKARTA - Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen issued a stern warning to the United States not to annex Greenland.

"We have stated it clearly before, and we say it again today... You must not annex a country, even under the pretext of international security," the two leaders said in their joint statement, quoted by national broadcaster DR as reported by Sputnik, Tuesday, December 23.

"Greenland belongs to the people of Greenland, and the US should not just take over Greenland," they said, while calling for respect for the integrity of their respective countries.

Frederiksen also said on his social media that the country, which has been a long-time ally of Denmark, is now pressuring his country.

The statement of the two leaders was made in response to US President Donald Trump's recent decision to appoint Louisiana state governor Jeff Landry as special envoy for Greenland affairs.

After his appointment, Landry reaffirmed the US government's intention to make the Danish autonomous region under US control.

Following the developments, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen expressed "great surprise" at the US special envoy's statement and would call the US ambassador in Copenhagen to ask for an explanation.

President Trump, on various occasions, has repeatedly stated that Greenland should be controlled by the US, given its strategic position for the national security and defense of the "free world", including from China and Russia.

Until now, Trump still refuses to rule out the possibility of using military force to control Greenland.

Former Greenland leader Mute Egede said his territory was not for sale and would not be sold.

The world's largest island was a Danish colony until 1953. The Danish territory received extensive autonomy in 2009, allowing it to govern and determine domestic policies independently.