Trump: Taking Greenland is revenge for losing Nobel Peace Prize

By Sean Rayment

The US president has suggested that his plan to seize control of Greenland was driven by resentment at being overlooked for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Donald Trump told Norway’s prime minister in a letter that, in retaliation for not receiving the award, “I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace” and would instead consider “what is good and proper for the United States of America”.

He also accused Denmark on Sunday of failing to protect the island from Russia and questioned the country’s claim to sovereignty over Greenland.

Mr Trump has repeatedly insisted that he wants to buy the mineral-rich island, despite leaders in both Denmark and Greenland saying it is not for sale and does not wish to become part of the US.

Any US military move against Greenland would be unprecedented and, many Western diplomats believe, could spell the end of the Nato military alliance.

In a separate overnight post on Truth Social, Mr Trump said: “Nato has been telling Denmark, for 20 years, that ‘you have to get the Russian threat away from Greenland’. Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it. Now it is time, and it will be done!!!”

Mr Trump argues that he must take over Greenland because it is surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships. However, there is no evidence for this claim in marine shipping data, and Danish security experts, along with the Danish and Swedish governments, have said it is inaccurate.

The US president has threatened to impose tariffs on European countries that oppose his annexation plans, including Britain. When Lord Mandelson, the former British ambassador to the US, was asked on BBC Radio how one should deal with this, he replied: “You take note and move on.”

Sir Keir Starmer told Mr Trump on Sunday that Britain should not be punished for opposing his attempt to take Greenland, saying that imposing tariffs on European countries for “pursuing the collective security of Nato allies is wrong”.

Speaking on Monday in an emergency address from Downing Street, Sir Keir warned that Britain could suffer “huge damage” from the threatened tariffs, “whether that’s in a trade war or the weakening of alliances”. The prime minister said the dispute over the territory should be settled through “calm discussion between allies” rather than military action or a trade war.

The European Union, meanwhile, is considering a trade war with Mr Trump after he was accused of “blackmail” over the tariff threats. EU leaders will meet on Thursday evening for an emergency summit, a spokeswoman said on Monday.

A diplomatic source told The Telegraph on Sunday that the EU was preparing €93bn (£80.6bn) in retaliatory tariffs against US exports to the bloc, after Mr Trump said he would impose a 10 per cent tariff on exports from Britain and the EU. The US levies are due to come into force on February 1 and could rise to 25 per cent on June 1 if no deal on Greenland is reached.

During emergency talks between EU envoys in Brussels on Sunday night, Emmanuel Macron urged member states to activate the bloc’s so-called “trade bazooka” to restrict US firms’ access to the single market in response to the threats.

Mr Trump’s remarks came as a Danish newspaper revealed that the United States attempted last year to gather sensitive information about military bases, air bases and ports in Greenland. The information was gathered “informally” and without Denmark’s involvement, according to the centre-right newspaper Berlingske.

Mr Trump has repeatedly vowed to annex Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, despite it being Nato territory. He has refused to rule out military action and has dismissed Danish efforts to address his security concerns, including last year’s £4.8bn defence package.

In a letter to Jonas Gahr Støre, the Norwegian prime minister, obtained by the US broadcaster PBS, Mr Trump suggested that his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize had influenced his desire to take over Greenland.

“Considering your country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped eight wars plus, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America,” he wrote.

Mr Trump also questioned Denmark’s right to own Greenland. “Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway?” he wrote. “There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also.”

He added: “I have done more for Nato than any other person since its founding, and now Nato should do something for the United States. The world is not secure unless we have complete and total control of Greenland.”

Britain’s car industry, worth £10bn and the country’s largest export sector to the US, was warned on Sunday night that it could face thousands of job losses if hit by higher tariffs. The sector had already fallen to its lowest level in 75 years in 2025. Carmakers currently face tariffs of 10 per cent on exports to the US, which could now increase to 35 per cent.

The Institute for Public Policy Research said that 25,000 jobs could be at risk across the UK automotive sector if Mr Trump did not back down. Peter Kyle, the Business Secretary, held emergency meetings over the weekend with car and steel manufacturers likely to be hardest hit by the tariffs, and is expected to continue crisis talks on Monday.

Giorgia Meloni, Italy’s prime minister, suggested that Mr Trump’s tariff threat was based on a misunderstanding over Danish-led joint exercises in Greenland last week and said it would be “an error” to proceed. She said the exercises were not directed at the US but were intended to provide security against “other actors”, widely understood to be Russia and China.

The exercises, Arctic Endurance, had been arranged before tensions escalated over Greenland. However, there has been speculation that Mr Trump interpreted the drills, which included British, German and French troops, as a protest against a US takeover of the island.

Ms Meloni’s remarks marked the first time she has criticised the US president so openly, representing a rare rift in their relationship. Mr Trump has frequently praised her both politically and personally. She is seen as one of his strongest allies in Europe, and there had been hopes she could act as a “Trump whisperer”, a bridge between Brussels and Washington.

Italian media reported that Ms Meloni appeared unusually grave and preoccupied when she spoke on Sunday during a visit to South Korea. “No one has ever seen her look so worried,” said Corriere della Sera.

Moscow has watched with apparent satisfaction as the rift between the US and Europe has widened over Greenland, with one pundit on Russian television saying “this is tremendous” for the country. The Kremlin said on Monday that the US president would go down in history if he succeeded in acquiring the Danish territory.

“There are international experts who believe that by resolving the issue of Greenland’s annexation, Trump will undoubtedly make history,” said Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman. “It’s hard to disagree with these experts,” he added.