Denmark summoned the top U.S. diplomat in Copenhagen after reports emerged that Americans were conducting covert operations in Greenland, the Daily Caller News Foundation confirmed Wednesday.
Danish media outlet DR reported that at least three U.S. citizens with connections to Trump were engaged in activities authorities fear could be used to promote the president’s goal of bringing Greenland under American control, according to the Associated Press. Greenland is a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, which Trump has long expressed interest in acquiring.
“Any attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of the Kingdom will, of course, be unacceptable,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said in a statement shared with the DCNF. “In that light, I have asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to summon the U.S. chargé d’affaires for a meeting at the Ministry.”
One individual allegedly compiled lists identifying Greenlanders based on their stance toward U.S. influence, while others maintained political and business contacts on the island, according to the AP. The Danish outlet was unable to clarify whether the Americans were working independently or at the behest of someone else.
Tensions over Greenland have been mounting as Trump has repeatedly stated his interest in acquiring the Arctic island. Strategically located between the U.S., Russia and Europe and rich in minerals, Greenland is considered valuable for both economic and defense purposes.
“For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” Trump wrote in a statement in December announcing that he had chosen Ken Howery to serve as ambassador to Denmark.
Vice President JD Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance visited the island in March in hopes of improving relations with Greenlanders.
“We are aware that foreign actors continue to show an interest in Greenland and its position in the Kingdom of Denmark. It is therefore not surprising if we experience outside attempts to influence the future of the Kingdom in the time ahead,” said Rasmussen. “The cooperation between the governments of Denmark and Greenland is close and based on mutual trust, just as there is close cooperation and dialogue between the relevant Greenlandic and Danish authorities.”
“It worries me greatly because we do not spy on friends,” Rasmussen said in May, responding to a report about increased American intelligence-gathering efforts in Greenland.
However, Carla Sands, U.S. Ambassador to Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands during Trump’s first term, pushed back on Denmark’s claims.
“I don’t have personal awareness of the U.S. government doing what Denmark is accusing them of doing in Greenland. However, I DO know that Denmark has tried to covertly influence the governments and people of Greenland and the U.S.,” Sands told the DCNF.
Neither the White House nor the State Department responded to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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