Denmark better placed on Greenland with US but 'not out of the crisis': FM
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NUUK: Denmark's foreign minister said Saturday (Feb 7) his country is now in a better position regarding US President Donald Trump's desire to acquire Greenland - an autonomous Danish territory - but stressed the crisis is not yet resolved.
"We are not out of the crisis, and we do not have a solution yet," Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters in Greenland's capital Nuuk, while adding: "We are in a much better position now, compared to a few weeks ago."
The minister added that there "are no threats on the table, there is no trade war with Europe" and that everyone agreed the situation should be worked out in a "normal diplomatic way".
Since returning to the White House last year, Trump has insisted that Washington needs to control the strategic Arctic island for security reasons.
He last month backed off threats to seize Greenland after striking a "framework" deal with NATO chief Mark Rutte to ensure greater US influence.
A US-Denmark-Greenland working group has been established to discuss Washington's security concerns in the Arctic, but details have not been made public.
Greenland's foreign minister Vivian Motzfeldt, who spoke alongside Lokke Rasmussen, welcomed that the parties were now in "direct dialogue," and added that the talks were respectful.
"But we are not where we want to be yet," she stressed and said it was "too early" to say where the talks would lead.
While Denmark and Greenland have said they share Trump's security concerns, they have insisted that sovereignty and territorial integrity are a "red line" in the discussions.
Asked about whether this red line was being respected in the talks, the Danish foreign minister said he would "not go into details" about the ongoing discussions, but said they believed this red line had been made "crystal clear" going into the talks.
"So I take it as a clear sign that it should be doable to find a solution while at the same time respecting these red lines," Lokke Rasmussen said, noting that the talks had begun with this precondition stated.
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