US Secretary of State Rubio affirms Greenland remains Danish territory

During a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers that Greenland is "for now" part of Denmark. He responded to Rep. Sarah McBride’s query about President Trump’s comments on NATO and U.S. interest in the island, noting that the administration is engaged in talks with both Greenland and Denmark on collective defence and missile‑defence cooperation. Rubio referenced the United States’ continued operation of the Pituffik Space Base, the only remaining U.S. military installation on the island, which supports missile‑warning and space‑surveillance missions.

The remarks come amid lingering Trump‑era proposals to acquire Greenland, which the former president framed as a core national‑security interest and warned could be vulnerable to China or Russia. Earlier, Trump’s special envoy Jeff Landry had publicly advocated for U.S. control of the territory, sparking backlash from Greenlandic leaders who have repeatedly asserted their desire to remain independent of both the United States and Denmark.