The acquisition of Greenland by the United States, as proposed by President Donald Trump, continues to make waves on the other side of the Atlantic as a Danish politician became the latest voice to reject the proposal.
Anders Vistisen, a Danish member of the European Parliament for the far-right Danish People’s Party, said the island’s long history with the Danish kingdom makes it not for sale,
“Dear President Trump, listen very carefully. Greenland has been part of the Danish kingdom for 800 years. It is an integrated part of our country,” Vistisen said.
Vistisen’s remarks came during a meeting of the Parliament in Strasbourg, France as he went on to rebuke the sale proposal more forcefully.
“It is not for sale,” Vistisen continued. “Let me put it in words you might understand, Mr. Trump: F‑‑‑ off.”
The heated remarks were quickly addressed by the European Parliament Vice President Nicolae Ștefănuță, who said profane language was not allowed in the chamber.
“It is not OK in this house of democracy,” Ștefănuță said. “Regardless of what we think of Mr. Trump, it is not possible to use such language.”
The exchange has become viral across social media and was posted by Vistisen on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Since Trump’s victory in November, he has shown a continued interest in buying the island for “national security purposes.”
Trump has also questioned whether Denmark, which has controlled Greenland since 1814, has a “legal right” to the territory and predicted that Greenland’s people will vote to join the U.S. He warned that if Denmark does not give up Greenland, the U.S. will “tariff Denmark at a very high level.”
Trump has also declined to rule out using the U.S. military to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal.
“No, I can’t assure you of either of those two. But I can say this: We need them for economic security. The Panama Canal was built for our military,” Trump said during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
Greenland, a territory of Denmark, has seen an increasingly popular independence movement, according to Reuters. On Jan. 3, Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede expressed his desire to pursue independence from Denmark.
However, as the island continues to be a territory of Denmark, a theoretical purchase by the Trump administration would have to be approved by the Scandinavian nation. But, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has made it abundantly clear that Greenland is not for sale.
In an interview on Danish television, Frederiksen said that there “has been very, very clear … that there is a lot of support among the people of Greenland that Greenland is not for sale and will not be in the future either.”
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
