China, in his words · Second term · № 118
Said Chinese destroyers were off Greenland and China or Russia would occupy it
“But we need that, because if you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyers. There are Chinese destroyers and bigger. There are Russian submarines all over the place. We're not going to have Russia or China occupy Greenland, and that's what they're going to do if we don't.”
- Said
- , Meeting with oil and gas executives, White House
- Subject
- Greenland
- Threat
- Military threat
- Topic
- Foreign policy
- Era
- Second term
What the record showed
CBS News reported that Greenland's minister of business, Naaja Nathanielsen, said she was "not aware" of any Russian or Chinese ships or submarines around Greenland, and that public ship-tracking data showed no Russian- or Chinese-flagged commercial vessels there. On January 17, 2026 Trump wrote that "China and Russia want Greenland" and announced tariffs of 10 percent, rising to 25 percent on June 1, on eight European countries until a deal for the "Complete and Total purchase of Greenland." On January 21 he said he would not impose the tariffs, citing a "framework of a future deal" reached with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.