Greenland: Macron warns of 'cascading consequences' if US seizes island

French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech to French ambassadors at the Elysée Palace, in Paris, France, on January 8, 2026. MICHEL EULER / VIA REUTERS

French President Emmanuel Macron warned that if the United States seized Greenland from Denmark, it would trigger a wave of "unprecedented" consequences, a government spokeswoman said on Wednesday, January 14.

"If the sovereignty of a European ally were affected, the cascading consequences would be unprecedented," spokeswoman Maud Bregeon reported Macron as telling a cabinet meeting. "France is closely monitoring the situation and will act in full solidarity with Denmark and its sovereignty."

Macron's statement came in reaction to US President Donald Trump insisting that US control of Greenland was "vital" for his planned Golden Dome air and missile defense system.

"The United States needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security. It is vital for the Golden Dome that we are building," Trump, who has vowed to seize the Arctic island from ally Denmark, wrote on social media. "NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES. Anything less than that is unacceptable."

Read more Subscribers only With US eyeing Greenland, NATO faces one of its most crucial tests

He added that NATO "should be leading the way" in building the multi-layer missile defense system. "IF WE DON'T, RUSSIA OR CHINA WILL, AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!" Trump wrote.

Trump maintains the US needs Greenland due to the threat of a takeover by Russia or China. The two rival powers have both stepped up activity in the Arctic, where ice is melting due to climate change, but neither claims Greenland, which is home to 57,000 people.

Trump's post came early on a day when Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart were set to visit the White House for talks on Greenland, meeting with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Lokke said he was hoping to "clear up certain misunderstandings." But it remains to be seen if the Trump administration also sees a misunderstanding and if it wants to climb down.

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Hours before the meeting was due to start, Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen sought to ease US concerns about security in Greenland, telling Agence France-Presse (AFP) that Denmark was boosting its military presence there and was in talks with allies on "an increased NATO presence in the Arctic."

'Greenland does not want to be part of the US'

Greenland's government and Denmark have been firmly against Trump's designs. "One thing must be clear to everyone: Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States. Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States," Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said ahead of the Washington talks.

Read more Subscribers only Long before coveting Greenland, the US expanded by opening its checkbook

Trump, when asked on Tuesday about Greenland's leader saying that the island prefers to remain part of Denmark, said: "Well that's their problem." "Don't know anything about him, but that's going to be a big problem for him," Trump said.

The US leader has repeatedly threatened to take over the vast, strategic and sparsely populated Arctic island, and he has sounded emboldened since ordering a deadly January 3 attack in Venezuela that removed its president.

On Friday, Trump said that he wanted Greenland "whether they like it or not" and "if we don't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way."

While an agreement with Denmark allows the United States to station as many soldiers as it wants on Greenland, Trump has doubled down on US ownership, telling reporters on Sunday that "we're talking about acquiring not leasing." The former real estate developer told The New York Times that ownership "is psychologically needed for success" and "gives you things and elements that you can't get from just signing a document."