Trump swats at Danish prime minister for 'nasty' statement on Greenland
President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of disrespecting the United States with a “nasty” and “inappropriate statement” opposing Trump’s bid to purchase Greenland.
“I thought that the prime minister's statement that it was ‘absurd,’ that it was an ‘absurd’ idea, was nasty. I thought it was an inappropriate statement,” Trump told reporters outside the White House. “All she had to do is say, ‘No, we wouldn't be interested.’”
The president added: “She's not talking to me. She's talking to the United States of America. You don't talk to the United States that way — at least under me.”
Frederiksen on Sunday dismissed as “an absurd discussion” the prospect of Trump’s administration buying the semi-autonomous Arctic territory, which is a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark.
“Greenland is not for sale. Greenland is not Danish. Greenland belongs to Greenland. I strongly hope that this is not meant seriously,” she told the Sermitsiaq newspaper.
Trump on Tuesday evening announced in a pair of tweets that he would cancel a planned state visit to Copenhagen in early September as a result of Frederiksen's remarks.
“Denmark is a very special country with incredible people, but based on Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s comments, that she would have no interest in discussing the purchase of Greenland, I will be postponing our meeting scheduled in two weeks for another time,” Trump wrote online.
“The Prime Minister was able to save a great deal of expense and effort for both the United States and Denmark by being so direct,” he continued. “I thank her for that and look forward to rescheduling sometime in the future!”
Following Trump's tweets, Frederiksen held a press conference to discuss the situation and inform the president that "the invitation is still open” for him to visit.
“We have a good dialogue with the Americans, make no mistake,” she said. “I don’t think that this would change.”
Trump on Wednesday suggested he will eventually travel to the Scandinavian nation despite the current diplomatic rift.
“Greenland was just an idea. Just a thought. But I think when they say it was 'absurd,' and it was said in a very nasty, very sarcastic way, I said, ‘We’ll make it some other time,’” he said. “We’ll go to Denmark. I love Denmark. I’ve been to Denmark. And, frankly, we’ll do it another time.”
Later Wednesday, Trump lashed out again at Denmark, complaining that Frederiksen's government is not meeting its NATO spending commitments.
Trump has long prodded members of the transatlantic military alliance to increase their domestic defense spending. Member states in 2014 agreed to spend at least 2 percent of their respective gross domestic product on defense spending by 2024. Eight countries are now at that target.
"For the record, Denmark is only at 1.35% of GDP for NATO spending. They are a wealthy country and should be at 2%. We protect Europe and yet, only 8 of the 28 NATO countries are at the 2% mark. The United States is at a much, much higher level than that," Trump tweeted.
"Because of me, these countries have agreed to pay ONE HUNDRED BILLION DOLLARS more - but still way short of what they should pay for the incredible military protection provided. Sorry!" he wrote in another post.
The Danish foreign minister, Jeppe Kofod, later tweeted that he had spoken with his American counterpart, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, emphasizing the ties between their countries.
“Appreciate frank, friendly and constructive talk with @SecPompeo this evening, affirming strong US-DK bond,” he wrote. “US & Denmark are close friends and allies with long history of active engagement across globe. Agreed to stay in touch on full range of issues of mutual interest.“
