Danish gov't seeks dialogue with Trump amid Greenland tensions

The Danish government has requested U.S. President-elect Donald Trump for a phone conversation following his controversial remarks on Greenland, but no official response has been received yet, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a press conference late Thursday.

In a meeting before the press conference, all party leaders in Folketing, the Danish Parliament, were briefed on ongoing diplomatic efforts on the Danish side after Trump said he would not rule out military measures to gain control over Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory.

Frederiksen emphasized that it currently has no reason to believe Trump would act on his statements, while Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said: "We should take him seriously, but not literally."

The prime minister also revealed that informal dialogue with the incoming U.S. administration has started since Trump's election victory in November. She expressed hope for further talks following Trump's official inauguration.

 In 1951, the United States signed an agreement with Denmark pledging to protect Greenland from attack. Fast-forward 74 years, and the threat is now coming from America.

This week, incoming U.S. President Donald Trump sent shockwaves across Europe when he refused to rule out using military force to annex the world’s largest island, an autonomous territory of 57,000 people that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. 

While there is little question as to which country would win in a fight, Denmark might have a better chance if it turned to the lawyers. Copenhagen could ask them whether the EU is somehow required to defend Greenland; whether it could invoke NATO’s common defense provisions against an attack by the alliance’s own largest member; and what Washington’s obligations are under the 1951 treaty.