Trump accuses Denmark’s leader of ‘nasty’ response to Greenland overture

by Morgan Chalfant - 08/21/19 12:15 PM ET

President Trump on Wednesday defended his decision to postpone a state visit to Denmark, accusing the country’s prime minister of making a “nasty and inappropriate statement” in rejecting his desire to discuss possibly purchasing Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory.

“I thought it was a very not nice way of saying something. They could have told me no,” Trump told reporters at the White House before departing for a speech at the AMVETS convention in Kentucky.

{mosads}“All they had to say was we’d rather not do that,” he added. “Don’t say, what an absurd idea that is.”

“She’s not talking to me, she’s talking to the United States of America. You don’t talk to the United States that way.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday criticized Trump for suggesting the U.S. might be interested in purchasing Greenland, calling the idea “absurd.”

“Greenland is not Danish. Greenland is Greenlandic. I persistently hope that this is not something that is seriously meant,” Frederiksen told reporters.

Trump on Wednesday accused Frederiksen of “blowing off” the United States, but also said he loved Denmark and would schedule a visit at some point.

“Frankly, we’ll do it another time,” he said.

His remarks follow Tuesday evening’s unexpected postponement of a planned trip to Denmark, a move that sparked broad criticism from Danish officials.

Frederiksen said at a news conference earlier Wednesday that Trump’s decision to postpone the trip surprised and disappointed her.

Trump on Tuesday evening tweeted that he would forgo the meeting after Frederiksen said at a news conference that Greenland “is not for sale.”

Trump wrote in post that he had “no interest” in discussing Greenland and would reschedule the visit.

“The Prime Minister was able to save a great deal of expense and effort for both the United States and Denmark by being so direct. I thank her for that and look forward to rescheduling sometime in the future!” Trump tweeted.

Following his Wednesday remarks, Trump returned to Twitter to complain about Denmark’s defense spending contribution to NATO:

….Because of me, these countries have agreed to pay ONE HUNDRED BILLION DOLLARS more – but still way short of what they should pay for the incredible military protection provided. Sorry!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 21, 2019