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Trump: Danish prime minister's response to Greenland interest 'nasty'

Posted at 12:26 PM, Aug 21, 2019
and last updated 2019-08-21 13:26:58-04

President Donald Trump told reporters Wednesday that he took offense to the Danish Prime Minister's comments about his interest in purchasing Greenland.

After the Wall Street Journal broke the story that Trump was interested in purchasing the territory from Denmark, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the idea "absurd."

"I thought the prime minister's statement was absurd. It was an absurd idea; it was nasty. I thought it was an inappropriate statement," Trump told reporters Wednesday.

"All she had to say is that she wouldn't be interested."

Trump was scheduled to visit Denmark in two weeks. On Tuesday evening, he postponed the trip , citing the Prime Minister's lack of interest in discussing a deal for Greenland.

"All they had to do was say, 'No we'd rather not do that' or 'we'd rather not talk about it.' Don't say 'what an absurd idea that is," Trump said Wednesday.

Greenland is a part of Denmark but operates as a semi-autonomous territory. US presidents have discussed purchasing the region for years, due to the island's strategic placement in the Atlantic and the resources the island produces.