Trump serious about wanting to take over Greenland, says Danish prime minister – as it happened

Icelandic singer songwriter Björk has backed Greenlanders in their pursuit of independence, saying “Icelanders are extremely relieved that they managed to break from the Danish in 1944.”

In a social media post, she specifically referenced the Guardian’s coverage of historical controversies and alleged violations of the Greenlandic population by Denmark, including “systemic discrimination” of thousands of girls and women fitted with IUDs without consent in an attempt to reduce the population of Greenland.

She didn’t specifically say anything about the US, but added:

“Colonialism has repeatedly given me horror chills up my back, and the chance that my fellow Greenlanders might go from one cruel coloniser to another is too brutal to even imagine.”

(Fans of her music will surely note it’s not the first time Björk urges people to declare independence.)

Denmark’s prime minister has said she believes Donald Trump is serious about wanting to take over Greenland, and that both Denmark and Greenland have clearly rejected his ambition.

On Monday, in an interview with public broadcaster DR, Mette Frederiksen said: “Unfortunately, I think the American president should be taken seriously when he says he wants Greenland.”

She added: “I have made it very clear where the Kingdom of Denmark stands, and Greenland has repeatedly said that it does not want to be part of the United States.

“If the United States attacks another Nato country, everything stops.”

Meanwhile, Greenland has urged Donald Trump to give up his “fantasies about annexation” after the US president, fresh from his military operation in Venezuela, again threatened to take over the Arctic territory.

In a bracingly direct statement, the Greenlandic prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, accused the US of “completely and utterly unacceptable” rhetoric, declaring: “Enough is enough.”

“Threats, pressure and talk of annexation have no place between friends,” said Nielsen in a social media post on Monday. “That is not how you speak to a people who have shown responsibility, stability and loyalty time and again. Enough is enough. No more pressure. No more innuendo. No more fantasies about annexation.”

Greenland, he said, was “open to dialogue” but it had to come through the appropriate channels and in line with international law, “not random and disrespectful posts on social media”.

He added: “Greenland is our home and our territory. And that is how it will remain.”

And on Ukraine talks, we are just getting a line from the White House that US peace envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will represent the US at tomorrow’s meeting in Paris.

Separately, EU agriculture ministers will on Wednesday discuss the European Union’s trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur at an extraordinary meeting in Brussels, the European Commission told AFP.

European diplomats said the talks could be a prelude to a vote by EU member states on Friday on the agreement that has faced strong pushback from European farmers and got delayed late last year.

Bloomberg News (£) reported earlier today that Italy was prepared to drop its opposition to the deal, paving the way for it to be adopted.

We are getting more and more confirmations ahead of tomorrow’s summit of the Coalition of the Willing in Paris, with Nato’s Mark Rutte the latest to send his RSVP.

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, will also attend, her spokesperson confirmed earlier.

Poland’s defence minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, revealed that there will also be a separate “important” preparatory meeting of the army chiefs this afternoon, discussing the key security guarantees for Ukraine.

Over in Ukraine, the country’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday ousted the country’s security service chief in the latest change to Kyiv’s top intelligence positions, almost four years into the Russian invasion, AFP reported.

Zelenskyy and Vasyl Maliuk, a popular military leader who won praise for overseeing ambitious operations against Russian forces, said that Maliuk was stepping down as head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

Amid reports Maliuk was on the brink of being removed, several top military figures had rallied behind him with statements of support over the weekend, AFP noted.

Zelensky on Monday issued a decree appointing Yevgeny Khmara, who headed an SBU division, as temporarily in charge of the security service amid a search for a permanent replacement.

Meanwhile, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán told reporters it was currently not a good time for Russian president Vladimir Putin to visit Budapest, as there were no bilateral issues to discuss, Reuters reported.

US president Donald Trump had previously planned to hold talks with Putin in Budapest, but the meeting never took place.

Despite his close relations with Russia and fervent criticism of the EU, Orbán – who faces a tricky parliamentary election this year which could see him ousted from office after 16 years in power – insisted he considered Hungarian membership of the EU “important” and he saw the country’s future “in the EU, under Nato protection,” Reuters said.

The controversial Hungarian prime minister also offered his response to the US intervention in Venezuela, saying it should result in a more favourable situation on world energy markets.

UK prime minister Keir Starmer has offered his support to Denmark and Greenland, backing the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen.

“Well, I stand with her, and she’s right about the future of Greenland.”

In a separate question, Starmer was asked if he agreed with calls from the Danes for the US president to stop proposing American annexation of the island.

He replied:

“Yes. Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark are to decide the future of Greenland, and only Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.

Denmark is a close ally in Europe, it is a Nato ally, and it’s very important the future of Greenland is, as I say, for the Kingdom of Denmark, and for Greenland, and only for Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.”

My colleague Andrew Sparrow has more on our live UK politics blog.

There is also an EU line on Ukraine and tomorrow’s Paris meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, with the commission spokespeople saying “there is progress” in discussions on security guarantees, but they won’t say more until the meeting takes place.

The EU sees a membership of the bloc as “one very clear security guarantee” for Ukraine, and one that can be offered “independently of what the Coalition of the Willing can put forward.”

“But as said, in terms of details and who contributes, how, let’s wait for the mission for the meeting tomorrow to provide further details on this and on security guarantees in general.”

The EU’s chief spokesperson also gets repeatedly asked about Trump’s line that “the European Union needs us to have [Greenland] and they know it.”

Pinho tries to avoid answering the question once again, but eventually says:

“I’m not informed about any discussion with the US by our representatives on this issue.”

Pressed, she adds:

“Greenland has its autonomy. And of course, each country may be very interesting from many points of view, but that that shouldn’t trigger any interest beyond possible, for instance, business.”

Asked for comments on Venezuela, the EU spokespeople said that Venezuela’s Maduro “lacked the legitimacy of a democratically elected leader, and therefore the events over the weekend provide the opportunity for a democratic transition, led by the Venezuelan people.”

But they declined to offer a term to name what had happened in Venezuela, even when offered some suggestions.

“I think the statement is very clear in saying that the international law must be respected, and this is what we are recalling and expecting all the actors involved to do that,” EU’s Hipper said.

When it was pointed out to her that the US intervention had already happened with major questions over its legality, she declined to say whether the US actions were legal under international law.

“As the events just unfolded, it is too early to look into and assess all the implications in terms of legal assessment,” Hipper said.

Meanwhile, the European Commission offered a very soft response to a question on Donald Trump’s latest comments on Greenland.

The commission’s chief spokesperson Paula Pinho said only that “we had heard it before, and we stick to what we had already said in this room about that.”

Lead foreign spokesperson Anitta Hipper also repeated that “the EU will continue to uphold the principles of national sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders and the UN Charter.”

“These are universal principles, and will not stop defending them.”

She repeated that Greenland is “an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark,” and any changes on that would be for Greenlanders and Danes to decide.

Repeatedly pressed for a clearer line on this, she said:

“We have had this question before, will not comment blow by blow … The situation is that we expect all our partners to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity and to abide by the international commitments.”

in Berlin

Cautious remarks at the weekend by Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, about the US intervention in Venezuela have come in for criticism at home, with the opposition accusing him of cowardice in the face of naked aggression.

In a statement on Saturday, Merz largely withheld judgment of the US bombardment of Venezuela and the capture of its president, Nicolás Maduro, who he said had “led his country to ruin”.

“The legal assessment of the US intervention is complex and requires careful consideration,” Merz said. “We’ll take our time for it.”

Franziska Brantner, co-leader of the opposition Greens, said Merz should have clearly condemned what she called a violation of international law.

“Maduro is a nasty dictator. But attacking his country without any legal basis and then announcing on camera that you now want to seize Venezuela’s oil reserves – that’s straight out of the imperialism playbook,” she told Der Spiegel, referring to Trump.

She said the world order now risked reverting to the “law of the jungle” with Greenland and the Baltic states up for grabs by world powers.

“The German government and Europe must finally find clear words to say to Trump. Friedrich Merz’s statements almost speak to a denial of reality and a desire to appease Trump,” said Brantner.

The Social Democrats, partners in Merz’s centre-right-led government, also found his response to be inadequate.

“The situation under international law is not complex. The German government and the European Commission must clearly call out this breach of international law,” MEP and SPD legal expert René Repasi said.

If we accept that the powerful are above the law, “it will spell the end of the rules-based world order and a return to the 19th century,” Repasi said.

SPD leader and Germany’s vice-chancellor Lars Klingbeil described developments in Venezuela as “very worrying”. Maduro had led an authoritarian regime, he said. However, “that cannot be a justification for disregarding international law”.

Fellow conservatives on Monday defended Merz, saying his statement reflected the complicated reality on the ground.

“There are indeed various aspects that we have to take into account, and in this respect the chancellor is absolutely right. It is extremely complex,” foreign minister Johann Wadephul told public broadcaster Deutschlandfunk.

“Maduro led a regime that was not bound by the law, eight million people have left the country. There are political prisoners,” Wadephul said.

He noted the United Nations had condemned the human rights situation in Venezuela and that there were proceedings against Venezuela before the international criminal court. Beyond that, Maduro is not the legally elected president of this country.

Wadephul later told reporters Germany would discuss open “questions” about the intervention with the United States, adding Berlin would welcome “free elections” in Venezuela.

CDU foreign policy expert and former party leader Armin Laschet stressed it was essential to remain in dialogue with the US and that diplomatic restraint by the EU reflected the pragmatic realpolitik needed to navigate the emerging world order.

“We must not forget that we are still involved in Ukraine,” and in need of US support, he told rbb radio.

“Would it be wise for Europeans to decide now to bring a unilateral indictment against” Trump? Laschet asked. He said such a rupture would certainly lead to Washington turning its back on Kyiv and the Europeans. “Foreign policy is complicated. You have to take the realities of the world into account.”

Merz’s circumspect stance jibed with a statement by French president Emmanuel Macron, who said the end of the “Maduro dictatorship” was something the Venezuelan people could “only rejoice in”. Trump reposted the remarks on social media.

German media said Berlin and Paris had coordinated their reserved assessments so as to not antagonise Trump in the hope of having him on side on backing Ukraine.

We are now getting a news line, via AP, that a Paris court found 10 people guilty of cyberbullying France’s first lady Brigitte Macron.

The court convicted all defendants to sentences, ranging from a cyberbullying awareness training to 8-month suspended prison sentences.

We will bring you more on this soon.

Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has warned that “no one will take seriously a weak and divided Europe,” urging the continent to “arm ourselves” and “stay united like never before.”

“No-one will take seriously a weak and divided Europe: neither enemy nor ally. … One for all, and all for one. Otherwise, we are finished,” he said in a social media update in English.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday he had appointed Canada’s former deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland as his economic development adviser, citing her experience in attracting investment.

He said on X:

“Right now, Ukraine needs to strengthen its internal resilience – both for the sake of Ukraine’s recovery if diplomacy delivers results as swiftly as possible, and to reinforce our defence if, because of delays by our partners, it takes longer to bring this war to an end.”

France expressed its “solidarity” with Denmark following US president Donald Trump’s latest threats to take over the autonomous Danish territory of Greenland, AFP reported.

“Borders cannot be changed by force,” French foreign ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux told television channel TF1.

“Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders and the Danes, and it is up to them to decide what to do with it,” he said.

Diplomatic editor

European leaders emerged divided and torn as they tried to welcome the ejection of Venezuela’s authoritarian president, but still uphold the principles of international law that did not appear to allow Donald Trump to seize Nicolás Maduro, let alone declare that the US will run Venezuela and control its oil industry.

Europe tried to focus on the principle of a democratic transition, pointing out that the continent had not recognised Maduro as the legitimate leader of Venezuela since what were widely regarded as fraudulent elections in June 2024.

But Trump’s rejection of the Nobel prize-winning Venezuelan opposition figurehead, María Corina Machado, was awkward. Trump said she did not have support or respect in Venezuela, but European leaders have embraced her as leading an opposition that deserves power.

International lawyers say the US rejection of Maduro’s legitimacy opens a path for Washington to argue that he does not enjoy sovereign immunity as a head of state in the US domestic courts, in the same way that George Bush was allowed to try Manuel Noriega in the US after his capture in 1989.

US officials have claimed the operation against Venezuela was justified on the grounds of self-defence, arguing that the government was involved in drug-trafficking.

The Yale professor of international law Oona Hathaway, however, said she saw no plausible justification under the UN charter for the US use of force. “If drug trafficking is a reasonable justification for attacking another country then a whole range of possible arguments can be made that basically mean that self-defence is no longer a real exception. It’s the new rule.”

In a sign of Europe’s discomfort, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the prime minister of Greece, one of the 10 non-permanent countries on the UN security council, tried to close down discussion of Trump’s methods. “Nicolás Maduro presided over a brutal and repressive dictatorship that brought about unimaginable suffering on the Venezuelan people. The end of his regime offers new hope for the country,” he wrote on social media, adding that “this is not the time to comment on the legality of the recent actions”.

The closer ideological allies of Trump in Europe, such as the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, deemed the US operation legitimate, describing it as a “defensive intervention”.

Criticism from others was possibly muffled for fear of attracting Trump’s displeasure when his support for Ukraine is still considered vital. The EU foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas, said: “The EU has repeatedly stated that Maduro lacks legitimacy, and has defended a peaceful transition. Under all circumstances, the principles of international law and the UN charter must be respected. We call for restraint.”

The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, also focused on what might happen next. “We stand in solidarity with the Venezuelan people and support a peaceful and democratic transition. Any solution must respect international law and the Charter of the United Nations,” she said.

The German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, also dived for cover. “The legal assessment of the US intervention is complex and requires careful consideration,” he said.

France too was circumspect. Without mentioning the US military operation, Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday that the end of the “Maduro dictatorship” was something the Venezuelan people could “only rejoice in”, and called for a “peaceful and democratic transition” led by Edmundo González Urrutia, the opposition candidate for the 2024 presidential election. In an act of solidarity he also spoke to Machado.

The clearest critic was the French foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, who said the operation to capture Maduro “violates the principle of non-use of force that underpins international law”.

“France reiterates that no lasting political solution can be imposed from the outside and that sovereign peoples alone decide their future,” he said.

“The repeated violations of this principle by nations entrusted with the primary responsibility as permanent members of the United Nations security council will have heavy consequences for world security, sparing no one.”

UK prime minister Keir Starmer shed no tears over Maduro’s departure and mentioned the importance of international law, but the UK prime minister did not discuss how it might apply in this instance.

Those who advocate for international law may now find themselves appealing to a vanishing world order in which Venezuela is the latest burial in an already crowded graveyard.

We are also expecting a news line from France this morning, as we are waiting for a verdict in a high-profile case brought for alleged online harassment of the French first lady, Brigitte Macron, with malicious comments about her including claims she was born a man.

10 people are accused of making malicious comments about her gender and sexuality. For some, this included equating her age difference with her husband, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, to “paedophilia”. If convicted, they face up to two years in prison.

The Paris trial is the latest phase in a legal battle on both sides of the Atlantic against the false claim that Brigitte Macron is a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux.

Here’s out latest report on the case:

Meanwhile, at least two people were killed in a series of overnight Russian attacks on Ukraine, just a day before a high-level diplomatic summit in Paris on ending the war.

AFP reported that the strikes caused power outrages in some areas of the country, with backup systems activated to maintain water and heating supplies, the official said, as temperatures dropped to -8C.

Two airports in neighbouring Poland had to briefly close in the early hours on Monday, as the country’s military monitored Russian strikes on western Ukraine.

Welcome back to Europe Live in 2026. Hope you all had a great break and are ready to face what’s ahead of us, as the new year looks set to be once again pretty wild.

So far, we have had the US military action in Venezuela leaving EU leaders torn, a major energy blackout in Berlin, a disruptive airspace control outage in Greece, heavy snowfalls in parts of Europe, new Russian attacks on Ukraine, and just last night, renewed US threats against Nato ally Denmark over Greenland.

Paraphrasing a popular scene from Tintin, which turned into a meme: what a year, huh? Captain, it’s only 5 January. Buckle up.

It’s not exactly normal for the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, to have to issue a stern statement telling the US president, Donald Trump, that:

“It makes absolutely no sense to talk about the US needing to take over Greenland. The US has no right to annex any of the three countries in the Danish kingdom.”

She added:

“I would therefore strongly urge the United States to stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people who have said very clearly that they are not for sale.”

She was swiftly and pointedly backed by other regional leaders, including Finland’s Alexander Stubb, Iceland’s Kristrún Frostadóttir, Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre and Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson.

In a post on Facebook, Greenland’s prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen also called Trump’s comments “completely and utterly unacceptable,” and “disrespectful.”

But speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday hours after their remarks, Trump doubled down on his claim that Greenland should become part of the United States.

“We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it,” Trump told reporters, adding:

“You know what Denmark did recently to boost up security in Greenland? They added one more dog sled. … The European Union needs us to have it and they know it.”

“We’ll worry about Greenland in about two months … let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days,” he added.

Erm.

The Danish Trump watcher, a position set up to specifically monitor what’s coming out from the US president’s mouth to alert Danish leaders, must have sighed a few times last night.

I will bring you all the key developments here.

It’s Monday, 5 January 2025 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.

Good morning.