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As the Trump administration remains at an impasse with Greenland over its push for US control of the Danish territory, members of Congress in both parties are starting to prepare options to protect the NATO alliance.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, convened a Wednesday meeting of the Arctic Caucus with the foreign ministers from Greenland and Denmark, and she will travel to Copenhagen on Friday to meet with Danish officials to shore up relationships with the country. The moderate Republican has even introduced a long-shot bill that would block funds for a US incursion on any NATO ally.
It’s a very clear reaction to President Donald Trump’s persistent remarks about wresting power over Greenland. As Murkowski put it to Semafor on Wednesday afternoon: “If you had asked me a few weeks ago if I thought we needed a bill like this, I would say, of course not.”
“My hope is that this is all going to be water behind us, and we’re not going to need it,” she added. “But right now, we’ve got to make sure that there is no question about how we approach a relationship with Greenland … and we need to remember that it’s not just a relationship with Greenland, it’s the broader relationship with NATO.”
She’s not alone in scrambling into action. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., is heading to Denmark with her and on Wednesday torched the “absurd” idea of taking Greenland. A few minutes earlier, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., denounced a Greenland seizure as an “unprecedented act of strategic self-harm” and pointed out the miniscule support for it in public polls.
All three of those Republicans are known for their willingness to cross Trump. But they’re more concerned with achieving a de-escalation than battling with Trump — which means reaching an agreement with Denmark that avoids further threats to an ally.
“We need to effectively discourage the administration from taking a step that I hope and don’t believe they will take,” Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., told Semafor. He said it was important to continue to have face-to-face conversations with NATO allies amid the upheaval.
Congress sent its increasingly urgent signals as top US, Danish and Greenlandic officials met on Wednesday, though their sitdown failed to resolve the stalemate over Trump’s calls for the US to control the Danish territory.
Both sides are in “fundamental disagreement,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told reporters following the meeting with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Denmark has ruled out the idea of allowing a US purchase of Greenland, while Trump has ratcheted up tensions further by suggesting that a US military takeover is on the table.
“We need it for national security,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday following the meeting. “I’m not going to give up options.”
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While Rasmussen acknowledged that the two sides remain at odds, he said they agreed to form a “high-level working group” that can determine whether there is a way for the US, Denmark, and Greenland to work together on security issues.
“We agree that it makes sense to try to sit down on a high level to explore whether there are possibilities to accommodate the concerns of the president while we at the same time respect the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark,” Rasmussen told reporters at the Danish embassy in Washington. “Whether that is doable, I don’t know.”
At the same time, Rasmussen called any solution that does not respect the “territorial integrity” of Denmark and the wishes of the Greenlandic population “totally unacceptable.” He’s got back-up in Congress.
“I do not support the administration’s approach with regard to Greenland, either pressuring the country or buying Greenland or invading Greenland,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. “I believe, through negotiations and diplomacy, that Denmark and Greenland would agree to a broader US presence. And I don’t know why that option isn’t being pursued.”
It’s unclear exactly who will participate in the working group of US, Danish and Greenlandic officials agreed to on Wednesday, but Rasmussen said they would likely meet “within a matter of weeks” on the next steps. The White House and State Department didn’t respond to inquiries for more details about the plans.
In an earlier post on social media, Trump accused Denmark of defending the region with “dogsleds.” The White House also posted an illustration to X making light of the dispute.
Speaking to reporters, Rasmussen suggested that Trump has leveled accusations without any factual basis.
“It’s not a true narrative that we have Chinese warships all around the place,” he said, referring to one of the claims circulated by the president.
The View From Europe
Trump’s renewed interest in Greenland has rattled European leaders already worried about his broader plans for Ukrainian and European security.
A US seizure of Greenland — a member of NATO as a Danish territory — would have “cascading consequences” that would be “unprecedented,” French President Emmanuel Macron warned through a spokeswoman on Wednesday.
Room for Disagreement
As remarkable of a step as Murkowski’s bill represented — two House Republicans backed a similar measure on Wednesday — it doesn’t have much of a chance with the rest of her party.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., wisecracked that Senate Majority Leader John Thune would “jump on it like a bad rash.”
“I don’t think it’s necessary,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. “I think the Danes will give us complete access to anything we want in Greenland. That to me would be a preferable outcome.”
Notable
- Denmark is prepared to defend Greenland, the county’s army chief told The Atlantic.
- Purchasing the territory could cost up to $700 billion, NBC reported.