There is a report that Trump concedes ‘bad information’ on Greenland troop moves, opening path to de-escalation.
Trump’s concession on Greenland troop deployments hints at de-escalation, but the strategic standoff with Europe remains unresolved.
Summary:
-
Trump privately conceded he may have had “bad information” on Greenland troop moves
-
European deployments were pre-briefed and coordinated with US structures
-
UK officials see scope for de-escalation
-
Core US–Europe disagreement over Greenland remains unresolved
-
New tensions emerge after Trump message to Norway’s PM
President Donald Trump has privately acknowledged that he may have been given “bad information” regarding recent European troop deployments to Greenland, a concession UK officials see as a potential opening to dial down rapidly escalating transatlantic tensions.
According to a senior UK official cited by CNN, Trump made the admission during a weekend phone call with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The remarks relate to announcements last week by several European NATO countries that they would deploy small contingents of military personnel to Greenland to take part in joint exercises with Denmark, moves that drew a sharp reaction from the US president.
Officials familiar with the matter say Danish diplomats had briefed Washington ahead of the public announcements. A Danish official told CNN the deployments were not only communicated in advance but were pre-coordinated within existing European and US military structures, underscoring that the exercises were routine rather than provocative.
Despite that coordination, the announcements triggered fresh friction inside the NATO alliance, with European diplomats telling CNN they were taken aback by how quickly tensions escalated across the Atlantic. Against that backdrop, UK officials view Trump’s apparent concession as an important signal that miscommunication, rather than intent, may have driven part of the dispute.
The broader disagreement over Greenland, however, remains unresolved. Following talks in Washington between Denmark’s foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Greenland’s foreign minister Vivian Motzfeldt, and senior US officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, Rasmussen said the US and Europe still hold a “fundamental disagreement” over Greenland’s future.
Privately, Danish and Greenland officials said Washington listened to their red lines but did not retreat from Trump’s stated objective of gaining control of the island. They did, however, welcome the creation of a high-level working group as a channel to keep dialogue open. Fresh uncertainty was added after Trump sent a text to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, warning he no longer felt bound to “think purely of Peace” after missing out on a Nobel Prize—introducing a new and unpredictable flashpoint
This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.