Trump ramps up Greenland threats and says US will intervene ‘whether they like it or not’

Donald Trump has doubled down on his threats to acquire Greenland, saying the US is “going to do something [there] whether they like it or not”.

Speaking at a meeting with oil and gas executives at the White House, the US president justified his comments by saying: “If we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland. And we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor.”

He added: “So we’re going to be doing something with Greenland, either the nice way or the more difficult way.”

Trump’s latest comments come amid escalating tensions between the US and its Nato allies, including Denmark, over his administration’s repeated attempts to take control of the largely autonomous Arctic territory. Trump’s posture has been firmly rejected by Denmark and Greenland.

Despite admonishments from Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen, who recently said that a US attack on Greenland would mean the end of “Nato and therefore post second world war security”, Trump has continued to insist that he supports the alliance.

“If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have a Nato right now,” Trump said on Friday. “But we’re not going to allow Russia or China to occupy Greenland, and that’s what’s going to happen if we don’t.”

Trump has long expressed interest in Greenland, first publicly floating the idea of acquiring the territory in 2019 during his first presidency. The proposal met swift opposition from Danish and Greenlandic leaders.

Trump revived the topic in recent weeks, particularly after the US attack on Venezuela and its capture of president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, an episode reflecting the White House’s increasingly emboldened posture. Trump said he needed Greenland “very badly” as a national security imperative.

Meanwhile, Greenlanders have repeatedly expressed their refusal to be part of the US, with 85% of the population rejecting the idea, according to a 2025 poll. Polling shows only 7% of Americans support the idea of a US military invasion of the territory.

Greenland was not the only issue on Trump’s radar on Friday. He warned that the US would take action against the Iranian regime if it moves to violently suppress protesters as demonstrations continue to grow across the country.

Describing Iran as being in “big trouble”, Trump said: “If they start killing people like they have in the past, we will get involved. We’ll be hitting them very hard where it hurts.”

He added: “And again, I tell the Iranian leaders: ‘You’d better not start shooting, because we’ll start shooting too.’”