Trump Greenland Policy

Hundreds of protesters — many veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan — gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen to denounce President Trump’s “stayed a little back” NATO remark and his push for Greenland, laying 52 Danish flags bearing the names of fallen soldiers. Danish Veterans Association president Carsten Rasmussen and Lt. Col. Niels Christian Koefoed said they felt betrayed and angry; British PM Keir Starmer called the comments “insulting and frankly appalling,” Trump praised only U.K. troops on Truth Social, and U.S. ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker stressed Greenland’s strategic importance while saying NATO can “overreact” to Trump’s moves.

President Trump attacked a UK–Mauritius agreement to transfer control of the Chagos Islands — a deal he had previously supported — saying his administration’s push on Greenland informed his criticism. That Greenland rhetoric has provoked backlash in Denmark, where hundreds of veterans held a silent protest outside the U.S. Embassy on Jan. 31, 2026, objecting to belittling remarks about Denmark’s security role and to an incident in which embassy guards briefly removed — then replaced after an apology — 44 Danish flags honoring soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.