Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has claimed President Donald Trump wants to annex Greenland to prevent the US from being “drawn” into an “attack” on the territory from Russia.
During an interview Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” moderator Kristen Welker asked Bessent why Trump is still trying to seize Greenland despite the fact that “the leaders of Denmark and Greenland” [have said] bluntly, “Greenland is not for sale.”
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Welker asked the question after noting that Trump hinted Friday that he could punish countries with tariffs if they don’t support his actions on Greenland.
“Kristen, if we look back for years, over a century, American presidents have wanted to acquire Greenland,” he replied. “And what we can see is that Greenland is critical to US national security. We’re building the golden dome, the missile system.”
Claiming that Trump “is being strategic” and is “looking beyond next year to what might happen for a battle in the Arctic,” Bessent said: “We’re not going to outsource our national security. We’re not going to outsource hemispheric security to other countries.”
He added: “In Trump 1.0, President Trump told the Europeans, ‘Don’t build Nord Stream 2. Don’t rely on Russian oil.’ And guess what, Kristen? Guess what’s funding Russia’s efforts against Ukraine? European purchases of Russian oil. So America has to be in control there.”
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Trump has repeatedly supported the idea of annexing Greenland and has done sothe use of military force to achieve it was not ruled out, despite pushback from European leaders.
Welker pressed Bessent on how serious Trump is about Greenland and whether his actions were part of a “negotiating tactic.”
“President Trump strongly believes that we cannot outsource our security,” he replied, before adding that “down the road, this fight for the Arctic is real.”
“We would keep our NATO guarantees. And if there was an attack on Greenland from Russia, from another area, we would be drawn in,” he said. “So better now, peace by force, make it part of the United States and there will be no conflict because the United States is now the strongest country in the world.”
“We are the most powerful country in the world. The Europeans project weakness. The US projects strength.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and President Donald Trump. Getty Images/YouTube.
Welker did not budge, asking Bessent to confirm whether Trump used a “negotiating tactic.”
“Is the goal to get an agreement to have increased security in Greenland, for example?” she asked.
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“The president believes that increased security is not possible without Greenland being part of the US,” he replied.
Elsewhere in the interview, Welker asked the White House official why it was “necessary [for the U.S.] to take over and annex all of Greenland” despite the fact that “85% of the people living in Greenland oppose” the potential move.
“The United States has a base in Greenland. I spoke to lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Denmark has given the green light to the United States to strengthen its security as much as necessary in Greenland. Why not go that route?” she asked Bessent.
“Well, let’s look back again. Denmark has a terrible history with Greenlanders,” he replied. “There were forced sterilizations up until the ’80s or ’90s. So all of a sudden, now that the US has expressed interest, there’s, you know, this new interest.”
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Claiming that “the United States must be in control to prevent a war,” Bessent added, “And we don’t want to be dragged into somebody else’s war.”
Welker later said “senior Democrats say there are no pressing threats to Greenland’s security from Russia or China,” before asking Bessent what “evidence” the Trump administration has that there is a “pressing threat.”
She also noted that “the Danish foreign minister says there hasn’t been a Chinese warship in Greenland for a decade.”
“Well, first of all, Kristen, we have asymmetric information. And again, President Trump is strategic here. What evidence was there that the Russians were going into Crimea? Well, actually, there was a lot of evidence that the Russians were going to go into Ukraine,” he replied.
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Bessent turned to blaming the Biden administration. “And Joe Biden said, ‘Well, just take some of it.’ But what we do know is that Greenland can only be defended if it is part of the US.”
“And it won’t have to be defended if it’s part of the US. The president is trying to avoid a conflict,” he added.
Concluding their discussion of Greenland, Welker asked, “If the United States were to take Greenland by force, how would that be different from Russia’s annexation of Crimea?”
“Look, I think the Europeans will understand that this is best for Greenland, best for Europe and best for the United States,” he replied.
Watch Bessent’s “Meet the Press” interview below.
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