U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) speaks at a HALO Trust event in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., September 23, 2024. REUTERS/Bing Guan
COPENHAGEN, Jan 16 (Reuters) - A bipartisan delegation of U.S. lawmakers met the leaders of Denmark and Greenland in Copenhagen on Friday, seeking to "lower the temperature" with assurances of congressional support after President Donald Trump's threats to seize the Arctic island.
Trump has said Greenland is vital to U.S. security because of its strategic location and large supply of minerals and has not ruled out the use of force to take it. European nations this week sent small numbers of military personnel to the island at Denmark's request.
The 11-member U.S. delegation, led by Democratic Senator Chris Coons, met Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and her Greenlandic counterpart Jens-Frederik Nielsen, as well as Danish and Greenlandic parliamentarians.
"There's a lot of rhetoric, but there's not a lot of reality in the current discussion in Washington," Coons told reporters following the meetings, saying the lawmakers would seek to "lower the temperature" on returning home.
TRUMP ENVOY TO VISIT GREENLAND IN MARCH
Trump's special envoy to Greenland said on Friday he planned to visit the Danish territory in March, and that he believed a deal could be done.
"I do believe that there's a deal that should and will be made once this plays out," Jeff Landry told Fox News in an interview on Friday. "The president is serious. I think he's laid the markers down. He's told Denmark what he's looking for."
Trump said on Friday he may impose tariffs on countries that did not support his plan, "because we need Greenland for national security".
The delegation in Copenhagen included Republican Senators Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski, while the rest were Democratic lawmakers.
"I think it is important to underscore that when you ask the American people whether or not they think it is a good idea for the United States to acquire Greenland, the vast majority, some 75%, will say we do not think that is a good idea," Murkowski told a press conference.
"This senator from Alaska does not think it is a good idea."
Lawmakers from both Trump's Republican Party and opposition Democrats have said they would back legislation to rein in Trump's ability to seize Greenland, amid an ongoing fight over war powers, which the Constitution grants to Congress.
A House bill in support of annexing Greenland has also been introduced.
Just 17% of Americans approve of President Donald Trump's efforts to acquire Greenland, and large majorities of Democrats and Republicans oppose using military force to annex the island, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found. Trump has called the poll "fake".
WHITE HOUSE MEETING DID NOT SHIFT US STANCE
On his way into the Danish parliament building, Christiansborg, where the Greenlandic flag was being flown at the main staircase, Democrat Senator Peter Welch was asked if he had any advice on dealing with Trump over Greenland.
"Hold tight to your right to self-determination. That's really important. We support it. The president has no business messing with Greenland or Denmark," he told reporters.
Demonstrations were scheduled to take place in Danish cities and in the Greenlandic capital Nuuk on Saturday in support of Greenland.
The congressional visit followed a high-stakes meeting at the White House on Wednesday, where Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt met Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance.
Rasmussen said on Friday the meeting with Vance and Rubio had been constructive, even if the two sides had given different descriptions after the talks.
While Denmark said it had set out red lines making it clear Greenland could not be acquired, the White House on Thursday said Trump's goal of taking over the island remained the same as before.
"I would like to encourage us all to keep our heads cool and our hearts warm, and try to look past the media noise and short messages and let the work we have agreed on get started," Rasmussen said in a social media post.
Trump first floated the idea of acquiring Greenland in 2019 during his first term, but faces opposition in Washington, including from within his own party.
(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, Soren Jeppesen and Tom Little in Copenhagen, Terje Solsvik in Oslo, Anna Ringstrom in Stockholm, additional reporting by Simon Lewis and Susan Heavey in Washington; Writing by Stine Jacobsen and Niklas Pollard; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Alex Richardson)
