Trump's Greenland Plans Fracture Ties With Europe's Far-Right

President Donald Trump said in a Jan. 21 speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he had reached "a framework of a future deal" over Greenland, a claim that drew immediate pushback from Danish officials and split European far-right leaders.

The dispute follows Trump's Jan. 9 remark, "If we don't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way," which alarmed NATO allies and prompted a Jan. 16 bipartisan congressional delegation including Sen. Lisa Murkowski to travel to Copenhagen, records show.

Nigel Farage called Trump's Greenland moves "a very hostile act," and Jordan Bardella denounced what he called U.S. "commercial blackmail," while Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán avoided criticism and defended the U.S. stance, according to statements and interviews.

Far-right parties that surged in 2024 now hold 26% of the seats in the European Parliament, according to the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, and far-right MEPs voted in a recent debate to halt an EU-U.S. trade pact over unease with Trump's threats.

Analysts warn the rift could force far-right leaders to prioritize national sovereignty over ideological alignment, and European officials say the dispute could complicate NATO cooperation and influence upcoming national votes, including Viktor Orbán's election in April.