Denmark's foreign minister said Wednesday that a "fundamental disagreement" persists with U.S. President Donald Trump following diplomatic talks in Washington with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding the future of Greenland — the vast Arctic island under Danish sovereignty.
Still, the two sides agreed to set up a joint working group aimed at finding common ground.
"Ideas that would not respect the territorial integrity of the kingdom of Denmark and the right of self-determination of the Greenlandic people are of course totally unacceptable, and we therefore still have a fundamental disagreement," Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said during a news conference after the talks concluded. "But we also agree to disagree and therefore we will, however, continue to talk."
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It comes as President Trump continues to press for U.S. control of Greenland. He has declared that "one way or the other, we are going to have Greenland," citing national security concerns as China and Russia increase their presence in the Arctic region. He also warned that if the U.S. doesn't acquire Greenland then "Russia or China will."
"Greenland is very important for the national security, including of Denmark," President Trump said. "And the problem is there's not a thing that Denmark can do about it if Russia or China wants to occupy Greenland, but there's everything we can do. You found that out last week with Venezuela. There's everything we can do about things such as that not going to happen. We're not, you know, I can't rely on Denmark being able to fend themselves off."
The escalating rhetoric has strained relations between the longtime NATO allies, with European officials expressing concern about the implications for the Western alliance.
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On the eve of Wednesday's talks, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen reiterated that the territory has no interest in being owned or governed by the United States. He also pushed for more "peaceful dialogue based on collaboration" regarding the security of the territory.
“If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark," Nielsen said. "We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU.”
As recent as last week, the White House said President Trump was considering a range of options to acquire Greenland — including potential military intervention. However, Rubio later walked back that statement, telling lawmakers in a classified briefing that it is the administration's intent to potentially purchase Greenland rather than use military force.
WATCH | 'We choose Denmark': Greenland PM rejects Trump's push to acquire island
