Trump 'hasn't forgotten' about threats to seize Greenland, says US envoy – National
US President Donald Trump's special envoy to Greenland says Trump has “not forgotten” about his desire to take over the Danish territory, which he said was just proposed last weekend.
In a podcast released Wednesday, Jeff Landry, who is also the governor of Louisiana, said the US could “bring them into the fold” with “small things,” such as sending more troops and opening up more trade, which he said the Greenlanders support.
“He was talking to me Saturday night, 'We need to get Greenland,'” Landry said of Trump during an appearance on Breitbart's Alex Marlow Show. “He hasn't forgotten about it.
“I set some things up with the president,” Landry said later. “Let me tell you, from a strategic natural resources standpoint, that area is incredibly important to us. I mean, there's a huge oil and gas reserve there. There's some great rare minerals there. There's great fishing there. I mean, it's a great place, so we're going to find it.”
Trump's vocal push to annex Greenland earlier this year — and his refusal to deploy military force to do so — alienated Greenland and Denmark, the NATO ally that controls the autonomous island, and threatened to further undermine US relations with the rest of the alliance.
Trump backed off his threats in late January after speaking with NATO leaders and agreeing to talks between the US, Greenland and Denmark.
Landry visited Greenland in May and said in a Wednesday podcast that, based on the trip, “the people of Greenland want to be with the United States” and want a “closer relationship,” including an increased military presence.
Get daily world news
Get daily Canadian news delivered to your inbox so you don't miss the top stories of the day.
“They want to free themselves from Danish control, so now it's a matter of making that happen. And I think it's easy,” he said.
He pointed out that the US once had a very large war in Greenland but has reduced it in recent decades. Only one US military base, the Pituffik Space Base, remains in Greenland today.
“It's like… you had a girlfriend in high school, okay?” Landry said. “And y'all dated. Maybe you dated in college. It was great. It was a great relationship. And then it just fell apart. You didn't go bad, you just went. And then you see him like 10 or 15 years later and you're like, 'Oh my God, let's just get married.'
So the people of Greenland are a little shy. … They want to know that when we come back, it will be there forever and it will be good for them. So I think we will get it. I really agree.
A February poll for the Copenhagen Post found that 62 percent of Greenlanders do not support independence from Denmark, while only 5 percent favor closer ties with the US.
About 90 percent of Greenland's population of about 57,000 people are Inuit.
In a statement to Global News provided by his office, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said Landry's visit “strengthened our position.”
“The position in Greenland has not changed,” said Nielsen. “The government and the people of Greenland have no desire to be part of the USA.”
Landry posted on social media after leaving Greenland that he will “continue to work to deepen the relationship between our people” and forge a future agreement between Greenland and the US as one of “security cooperation, economic development, and shared strategic interests in the Arctic.”
However, in a post on X marking Greenland's National Day on June 21, Landry equated the holiday's “celebration of freedom and opportunity” with America's upcoming 250th anniversary on July 4.
“Perhaps America's 251st birthday can be celebrated with its addition [sic] District 51! he sent.
Canada – which has faced its own “region 51” rhetoric – has found common cause with Greenland amid Trump's threats, opening a new embassy in the island's capital Nuuk in February.
In March while visiting Norway with European leaders, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada would continue to “stand with Denmark and Greenland.”
He also pointed to this issue as an example of the necessary increase in Canada's military presence in the Arctic, although he emphasized at the Oslo press conference that the biggest threat to Arctic sovereignty remains Russia.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
