Donald Trump has reignited international tensions with a provocative five-word statement about Greenland, intensifying concerns about escalating global conflict.
Since his return to the White House, Trump has emphasized an “America First” agenda, and a key piece of that vision—controversially—remains Greenland. Despite repeated rejections from both the Greenlandic and Danish governments, the former president has not backed down from his long-standing desire to bring the vast Arctic territory under U.S. control.
During a speech in late March, Trump declared, “We need Greenland. Period.”
He elaborated further, emphasizing the strategic importance of the region:
“Very importantly, for international security, we have to have Greenland. It’s not a question of, ‘Do you think we can do without it?’ We can’t.”
While Trump has framed his remarks in terms of national security and global influence, critics fear such rhetoric could deepen geopolitical divisions and potentially draw the U.S. into conflict with its NATO allies—particularly Denmark, which retains sovereignty over the autonomous island.
The bold declaration has sparked renewed fears of escalating global tensions, with some observers warning it could contribute to a broader chain of events edging the world closer to a third world war.
Donald Trump has sparked WW3 fears with his latest Greenland comments (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
“If you look at Greenland right now, if you look at the waterways, you have Chinese and Russian ships all over the place, and we’re not going to be able to do that. We’re not relying on Denmark or anybody else to take care of that situation.”
As well as Greenland, Trump and his administration have also spoken about the importance of acquiring its northern neighbor Canada, despite them also being uninterested in becoming part of the US.
Speaking to NBC over the weekend, Trump clarified he doesn’t believe military action will be needed to make Canada become the ‘51st state’, however when it came to Greenland, he shockingly said ‘I don’t rule it out’.
Trump continued: “I don’t say I’m going to do it, but I don’t rule out anything.
“We need Greenland very badly. Greenland is a very small amount of people, which we’ll take care of, and we’ll cherish them, and all of that. But we need that for international security.”
This has sparked fears that world conflict could erupt and it could spell the end of NATO as both Denmark and the US are members.
An attack on Greenland could bring multiple nations into a war with the US (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
If Trump would attack the land, NATO’s Article 5 protocol comes into play: that an armed attack against one NATO member is considered an attack against all members.
Regarding the persistence of America to acquire Greenland, the country has pushed back and insisted they will decide their own future.
Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen in March said: “President Trump says that the United States ‘will get Greenland.’ Let me be clear: The United States will not get it. We do not belong to anyone else. We decide our own future.”
