Trump letter claiming US control of Greenland draws sharp criticism

The Atlantic warns remarks risk damaging US alliances and global credibility

A letter sent by US President Donald Trump to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre claiming the United States must have “complete and total control of Greenland” has drawn strong criticism from The Atlantic, which said the remarks show a president “living in a different reality” and risk serious damage to American alliances.

In the letter, Trump said that because Norway had “decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS,” he no longer felt obliged to think “purely of Peace” and would instead act in what he described as US interests. He questioned Denmark’s sovereignty over Greenland, arguing that Denmark could not protect the territory from “Russia or China” and asking why it had a “right of ownership anyway.”

Writing in The Atlantic, columnist Anne Applebaum described the letter as evidence of a president “living in a different reality,” citing its “childish grammar,” erratic capitalisation and factual errors. She noted that Trump did not end eight wars and that Greenland has been under Danish sovereignty for centuries, with its residents holding Danish citizenship and voting rights.

Applebaum added that several written agreements affirming Danish control over Greenland were signed by the United States itself. She also stressed that the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, an independent body, not by the Norwegian or Danish governments.

Trump’s interest in Greenland is not new. During his first term, he repeatedly suggested the United States should buy the Arctic territory, pointing to its strategic location, rare earth minerals and military value. Denmark rejected the proposal, saying Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Danish realm. Greenland has been part of Denmark for centuries and its residents are Danish citizens with self-governing rights under international law.

Read: Trump ties Greenland bid to Nobel Prize snub

Applebaum said Trump has revived the issue not as a diplomatic debate but as a personal grievance, tying Denmark’s sovereignty to his long-standing anger over not receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. In the letter, Trump wrote that he no longer felt obliged to “think purely of Peace” and claimed, “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.”

She said the claims ignore well-established legal and historical facts. “Greenland has been part of the Kingdom of Denmark for centuries,” Applebaum wrote, adding that Danish sovereignty is backed by “many written documents,” including treaties signed by the United States.

The article also rejected Trump’s claim that he had “stopped eight wars” and his assertion that he had done more for Nato than any leader since its founding. Applebaum wrote that Nato was created and led by the United States and has only ever been used in defence of American interests. She said higher defence spending by European allies was driven by the threat from Russia, not US pressure.

Read More: Trump vows tariffs on 8 European nations over Greenland

Applebaum warned that the broader message of the letter was more important than individual inaccuracies. “Donald Trump now genuinely lives in a different reality,” she wrote, “one in which neither grammar nor history nor the normal rules of human interaction now affect him.”

She said Trump’s focus on personal victory, particularly the Nobel Prize, was beginning to override long-term strategy, raising the risk of consequences ranging from trade wars to military escalation involving US allies. The article noted that financial markets had already reacted nervously to the remarks.

Looking ahead, Applebaum questioned how a US occupation of Greenland could even be carried out, saying it would require forcing citizens of a Nato ally to accept American rule against their will. “This would not be the occupation of Iraq,” she wrote, warning it would fundamentally undermine US credibility.

The article concluded that while some officials restrained Trump during his first term, his current inner circle appears unwilling to do so. Applebaum said Republicans in Congress are now the last remaining check, warning that “years of careful diplomacy, billions of dollars in trade” are at risk and that continued inaction could alienate European allies as well as partners in Asia, including India, South Korea, Japan and Australia.