Faced with what many in Denmark are calling Trump's "provocation," Frederiksen has broadly attempted to strike a conciliatory tone, repeatedly referring to the US as "Denmark's closest partner". It was "only natural" that the US was preoccupied by the Arctic and Greenland, she added.

Copenhagen has been deliberating over how to respond to statements by US President-elect Donald Trump about his desire to annex Greenland, amid indications that these remarks are not merely jokes. Danish officials have reportedly received signals from Trump's advisors and allies suggesting that he is serious about his plans.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says he wants to make Greenland a part of the United States and does not rule out using military or economic power to get Denmark to hand over the mineral-rich and strategically important island.

It’s been a while since Denmark has been the object of Donald Trump’s enduring obsession with Greenland and needing to remind the returning president repeatedly that the world’s largest island isn’t for sale.

Pituffik Space Base, located in the far north of Greenland since the end of the second world war, is home to 200 US military personnel and 450 other forces and contractors from allies, part of Washington’s missile early warning system as well as offering space surveillance and satellite command.

"I don't know what he what he means by that," Florida Senator Rick Scott said when asked about Trump's Greenland comments.