Washington, Aug 21 : The United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday called off his September visit to Denmark after the country’s prime minister laughed off his plan to buy Greenland.
Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Sunday rebuffed Trump’s idea of discussing the purchase of Greenland and said that the thought of selling the island to the States is absurd.
Following the Denmark PM’s remarks, Trump took Twitter and said, “Denmark is a very special country with incredible people, but based on Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s comments, that she would have no interest in discussing the purchase of Greenland, I will be postponing our meeting scheduled in two weeks for another time.”
“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!” he added.
Trump had earlier held private discussions with his advisors on his plans on buying Greenland, following which he had thought of discussing the same with the Danish PM in Copenhagen in September.
While the White House took Trump’s decision seriously, several Danish politician made a joke out of his intentions.
Danish People’s Party, Soren Espersen while speaking to an international broadcaster had said, “If he is truly contemplating this, then this is final proof, that he has gone mad.” “The thought of Denmark selling 50,000 citizens to the United States is completely ridiculous,” he added.
Greenland, the world’s largest island, has been in in the eyes of global superpowers like China, Russia and the US for years owing to its strategic location, and natural mineral resources. This is not the first time an American leader has tried to buy the island.
