Trump, Danes strained

PRESIDENT Donald Trump has declared Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s dismissal of his idea to buy Greenland “nasty” and an affront to the US, a day after shocking Danes by cancelling a visit over the rebuff.

Danes voiced disbelief at Mr Trump’s decision to forgo the trip, although Ms Frederiksen said she believed relations with the US, a NATO ally, would not be affected.

Mr Trump, who built his career as a businessman dealing in real estate, had mused openly in recent days about a US purchase of Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory rich in natural resources, raising eyebrows globally.

Former Danish prime minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen called it “an April Fool’s Day joke” and Ms Frederiksen called the idea “absurd”.

The latter comment set off Mr Trump, who often becomes riled up by criticism, real or perceived. He announced the cancellation of his planned September 2-3 trip to Denmark in a Wednesday tweet. “I thought that the prime minister’s statement … was nasty. I thought it was an inappropriate statement. All she had to do is say: ‘No, we wouldn’t be interested,’ ” Mr Trump said yesterday.

“She’s not talking to me. She’s talking to the United States of America. You don’t talk to the United States that way, at least under me.”

Ms Frederiksen, a centreleft Social Democrat, said she learned of Mr Trump’s decision “with regret and surprise”, given Denmark’s strong relations with Washington, but she repeated her opposition to any Greenland transaction.

She stressed that Greenland’s Premier, Kim Kielsen, had ruled out selling off the territory and “I obviously agree with him”.

But Ms Frederiksen said the US remained one of Denmark’s closest allies.

Mr Trump’s decision elicited condemnation, outrage and mockery among Danish opposition leaders and the public.