Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Feb. 14 she believed U.S. President Donald Trump still desires to own Greenland despite dialing back his recent threats to seize it by force.
Asked at a security conference in Munich if Trump still wanted to own the Arctic island, Frederiksen said: "Unfortunately, I think the desire is the same."
Trump's designs on Greenland have caused tension to soar between the United States and Europe.
Last month, he backed down from his threats to seize the island, an autonomous territory of ally Denmark, after striking what he called a "framework" deal with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
But relations have remained strained.
"Everybody asks us, do we think it's over? I mean, no, we don't think it's over," Frederiksen said, participating in a panel discussion on Arctic security.
Trump insists mineral-rich Greenland is vital for U.S. and NATO security against Russia and China as a melting Arctic opens up and the superpowers jostle for strategic advantage.
Frederiksen and her Greenlandic counterpart, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said the pressure on the island's people was "unacceptable."
But Nielsen said "some steps" had been taken "in the right direction."
A U.S.-Denmark-Greenland working group has been established to discuss Washington's security concerns in the Arctic, but details have not been made public.
