January 21, 2026, 11:50 pm
Author – Nick Turse
In a speech about annexing Greenland, President Donald Trump on Wednesday also appeared to announce plans for the United States to annex Iceland.
In a rambling and sometimes incoherent address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump announced U.S. designs on the Nordic island nation. “Until the last few days when I told them about Iceland, they loved me,” Trump said of European leaders. “What I’m asking for is a piece of ice, cold and poorly located, that can play a vital role in world peace and world protection.” He added that NATO is “not there for us on Iceland. … Our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. Iceland’s already cost us a lot of money.”
White House spokespersons Karoline Leavitt, Taylor Rogers, and Anna Kelly all failed to respond to repeated requests by email for clarification about whether the commander-in-chief meant to threaten Iceland or misspoke when he meant to say Greenland, a country that he has vowed to take by any means necessary. Repeated calls to the White House press office also went unanswered.
When a NewsNation reporter tweeted that Trump “appeared to mix up Greenland and Iceland,” Leavitt claimed the journalist had the facts wrong. “His written remarks referred to Greenland as a “piece of ice” because that’s what it is,” Leavitt tweeted.
In his remarks, Trump stated that “All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland,” suggesting his references to Iceland were mistakes.
In weeks of unhinged rhetoric about seizing Greenland, Trump has been clear that he is not interested in expanding U.S. access via a new pact that falls short of a takeover. He recently told the New York Times that “ownership is very important.” He continued, “That’s what I feel is psychologically needed for success.” Asked if he meant psychologically important for himself or the United States, Trump said his fixation on Greenland was personal: “Psychologically important for me.”
A 2025 survey found that 85 percent of Greenlanders do not want to join the United States. Just 6 percent of respondents said they were in favor of an American takeover.
“We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be frankly unstoppable. But I won’t do that,” Trump said during his World Economic Forum speech. “I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he had reached a “framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland” with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO. Neither the White House nor the Danish Prime Minister’s Office returned requests for comment on the substance of the proposed pact.
Trump’s designs on Greenland were once treated as loose talk and frivolous, if not farcical. Even after months of threats by the administration, allies still attempt to excuse his rhetoric. “We take him seriously, not always literally,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Tuesday of Trump’s fixation about annexing Greenland. As such, there’s reason to consider whether Trump’s threats against Iceland are a trial balloon rather than merely the ramblings of a 79-year-old following a trans-Atlantic flight. (Before repeatedly mentioning Iceland during his Wednesday speech, Trump derided his aged presidential predecessor as “sleepy Joe Biden.”)
The Trump administration frequently makes, relies on, and bases policy on fictitious and outlandish claims. Last year, the administration claimed the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua had, for example, invaded the United States, which it cited as justification to use the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to fast-track deportation of people the government says belong to the gang. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals eventually blocked the government from using the wartime law. “We conclude that the findings do not support that an invasion or a predatory incursion has occurred,” wrote Judge Leslie Southwick.
Last September, Trump even claimed that U.S. troops engaged in combat with members of Tren de Aragua on the streets of Washington, D.C. — a fiction that the White House press office refuses to address.
Last week, Trump told reporters that he would acquire Greenland “the easy way” or “the hard way.” On Wednesday, he continued to lob threats if Europe doesn’t acquiesce to the seizure of the Danish territory. “So they have a choice. You can say ‘yes,’ and we will be very appreciative,” he warned. “Or you can say ‘no,’ and we will remember.”
Iceland is a founding member of NATO, which consists of 32 member states from North America and Europe. Article 5 of the NATO treaty states that any armed attack against one of the member states is considered an attack against all members, and other members shall assist the attacked nation with armed forces, if necessary.
Requests for comment from Iceland’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the prime minister’s office about Trump’s annexation threats were not returned prior to publication.
The post While Threatening Greenland, Trump Also Threatens Iceland appeared first on The Intercept.
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Author: Nick Turse
