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Wednesday 21 August 2019 8:22 am  |  Updated:  Wednesday 21 August 2019 8:32 am

Trump scraps Denmark trip over Greenland grudge

By: Catherine Neilan

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WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 20: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media as he meets with President of Romania Klaus Iohannis in the Oval Office of the White House August 20, 2019 in Washington, DC. This is Iohannis’ second visit to the Trump White House and the two leaders are expected to discuss bilateral issues during their meeting. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Donald Trump has cancelled his trip to Denmark after the Danish Prime Minister told him Greenland was not for sale.

Over the weekend Mette Frederiksen shrugged off the US President’s suggestion that he buy the island – which is a semi-autonomous Danish territory – as a joke and dubbing it “an absurd discussion”.

But Trump has not taken kindly to being rebuffed.

“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,” he tweeted late last night.

“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!”

Frederiksen, who has been visiting the island to meet its premier, Kim Kielsen, told reporters on Sunday that Greenland could not be sold because it did not belong to Denmark.

“Greenland is not Danish. Greenland is Greenlandic. I persistently hope that this is not something that is seriously meant,” she 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….

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 20, 2019

At points Trump appeared to make a joke of his own proposal:

I promise not to do this to Greenland! pic.twitter.com/03DdyVU6HA

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 20, 2019

“Thankfully, the time where you buy and sell other countries and populations is over. Let’s leave it there. Jokes aside, we will of course love to have an even closer strategic relationship with the United States,” she said.

Main image: Getty

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