Rubio reaffirms ‘strong’ US relationship with Denmark amid Greenland tensions

BRUSSELS – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on April 3 reassured his Danish counterpart of the “strong” ties between the two countries, as tensions soar over Washington’s territorial threats against Greenland.

“Secretary Rubio reaffirmed the strong relationship between the United States and the Kingdom of Denmark,” a US statement said after a meeting on the sidelines of a Nato meeting in Brussels.

The statement did not say if there had been any discussion on Denmark’s autonomous territory of Greenland.

Tensions between the US and Denmark have soared after President Donald Trump repeatedly said he wanted to

take control of the resource-rich Arctic island

for security reasons.

The US statement said Mr Rubio’s talks with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen focused on “shared priorities, including increasing Nato defence spending and burden sharing, and addressing the threats to the alliance, including those posed by Russia and China”.

It added: “They also reviewed ongoing coordination to enhance stability and security in Europe and to secure an enduring peace in Ukraine.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen

visited Greenland on April 3

in a show of unity with the island.

Her visit came on the heels of

a trip by US Vice-President J.D. Vance

last week that both Nuuk and Copenhagen viewed as a provocation. AFP