Taoiseach calls for 'common sense' as Trump continues talk of acquiring Greenland

Taoiseach Micheál Martin with US president Donald Trump in the Oval Office on St Patrick’s Day 2025. Picture: Tasos Katopodis/Government of Ireland

Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said Greenland is part of Denmark and called for common sense to prevail as Donald Trump continues to claim that the US should own the territory.

The White House said on Tuesday that the US president has been discussing a “range of options” to acquire Greenland after European leaders insisted that Mr Trump must climb down from threats to take over the territory.

Using the US military is “always an option” for the president to consider, a statement released by the White House also said.

Mr Trump has insisted that taking over Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory, is vital for his country’s national security.

However, speaking in Shanghai on Wednesday, Mr Martin said that the EU was “rock solid” behind Danish resistance to Mr Trump.

“As said before, we can't respond to every comment other than to say this: Greenland is part of Denmark and the European Union is rock solid behind Denmark in that regard.

“I think common sense needs to prevail. The US has always had a military base in Greenland. I know that the Danish prime minister has been engaged with the White House and has been very clear that any issues around that need to be resolved or need to be discussed are open for discussion, in terms of the military base there.

He said that in terms of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Greenland, that was a matter for Denmark and Greenland. 

Mr Martin said he did not think that the prospect of the US buying Greenland was “realistic”.

The Taoiseach rejected the idea that Ireland and other nations had emboldened Mr Trump by failing to condemn the US seizure of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro.

“I don't think the two are comparable at all in terms of Greenland and Maduro. Maduro was a very repressive leader, and it's interesting that many, many Venezuelans are very happy that Nicolas Maduro is gone.

“It's important to state that Maduro has been a very, very repressive leader, and that creates challenges for us in terms of, how does one deal with regimes like that? And that's not today or yesterday that that problem has arisen. In previous times, you go back, it's not the first time that the US president has intervened in any given country.

“We believe the people of Venezuela should decide on their government.” 

Mr Martin said it was his view that “the sooner the world collectively gets back to increasing and reforming the United Nations to make the United Nations more authoritative, but also more representative, the better”.