【Wen/Observer Net, Ruan Jiaqi】

After raising the notion of "not excluding the use of force to obtain Greenland," which triggered strong protests from Denmark and European allies, the U.S. side turned its attention on Wednesday, with the White House, Secretary of State Rubio, and others adjusting their wording successively.

According to CNN and The New York Times, among others, reported on the 7th, Rubio stated after a congressional meeting that Trump had intended from the beginning to acquire the island through "purchase." He also revealed that he would hold talks with Danish authorities on the issue of Greenland next week.

Danish member of the European Parliament Anders Vistisen (Anders Vistisen) gave a firm rebuttal to Rubio's remarks when interviewed by CNN, refuting the possibility of the island being sold and emphasizing that Denmark would never negotiate with the U.S. on the matter of selling the island.

"If you negotiate while pointing a gun at someone, it is difficult to gain trust," he said. "I think negotiating under the gun is meaningless."

When asked whether pressuring Denmark to give up Greenland would completely end the alliance between the two countries, Vistisen warned that such actions by the U.S. would lead to serious consequences.

He said, "To be honest, all political parties in Denmark have been quite friendly towards the U.S. previously. But this situation is changing, and even if the Greenland issue is resolved, the relationship between the two countries will be hard to return to what it was before."

Vistisen said that Denmark and Greenland are consistent and resolute in their stance on this issue, "If the U.S. wants to seize Greenland, it can only do so by force. We will never negotiate in this way."

This Danish MP also warned that recent statements by the Trump administration have already led to a collapse of trust in the U.S. in the international community, "These statements are pushing many European allies toward China's side."

He joked, "Now, when you ask who the biggest opponent is (in Europe), people may not place the U.S. far behind China or Russia."

On January 7th local time, Rubio was interviewed after a congressional meeting. Associated Press

Since returning to the White House, Trump has repeatedly expressed his intention to control Greenland and sought to interfere in its affairs. On Tuesday local time, the White House openly threatened that Trump considered acquiring Greenland a top priority for U.S. national security, and was willing to "seize it by force."

According to U.S. media reports, the next day (7th), Rubio informed Congress about U.S. actions in Venezuela and subsequent measures. However, the focus of the legislators was far more than that, as they also demanded further explanations regarding the recent statements of the Trump administration on Greenland.

When asked if the option of "military takeover of Greenland" would be excluded, Rubio avoided the question, "I am not here to talk about Denmark or military intervention issues."

Subsequently, he reiterated the plan to meet with Danish officials next week, "The relevant discussions will take place during the meeting, and I cannot comment further today."

Rubio added that Trump had always intended to acquire Greenland through purchase. He defended Trump's decision, saying, "This is not anything new; he mentioned it during his first presidential term. Moreover, he is not the first president to discuss or study how to obtain Greenland."

However, Rubio went on to say that in terms of national security, the U.S. always retains all options.

He claimed, "If a president determines that a certain situation poses a threat to U.S. national security, previous presidents have had the right to respond with military means. And now my role is as a diplomat; we are always committed to resolving issues through other means first."

CNN believes that Rubio's statement still does not exclude the possibility of the U.S. taking military intervention measures to control Greenland.

On the same day, the White House spokesperson Levitt, who previously emphasized the "use of force" option, also changed her tone, stating that the Trump administration is actively exploring the "purchase of the island" plan. She also emphasized in a White House briefing that diplomacy is the preferred path for Trump.

But when asked why Trump did not rule out the use of military force to seize Greenland, she argued that the island holds significant strategic value for "U.S. national security," and therefore the U.S. always "retains all options."

Levitt claimed that Trump believed this served U.S. core interests, helping to contain Russian and Chinese expansion in the Arctic region, "which is also the reason why his team is currently exploring the feasibility of purchasing it."

When asked whether Trump acknowledged Denmark's ownership of Greenland, Levitt replied, "I have never heard him question this."

U.S. House Speaker Johnson tried to downplay the possibility of the U.S. taking military action against Greenland.

That day, he gave a defense in another press conference at Capitol Hill, stating that the U.S. always has military options on any issue, but this is just a general statement, "I think this is a general statement. On the issue of Greenland, it is clearly we are proceeding through diplomatic channels."

In response to Trump's repeated threats, the EU reaffirmed its support for Denmark and Greenland. European Council President Costa clearly stated in a speech on Wednesday that Greenland belongs to its people and is fully supported and endorsed by the EU.

Costa warned that U.S. unilateralism is a "fast track" to conflict, violence, and instability, and Europe will continue to firmly defend international law and multilateralism.

European Commission President von der Leyen also addressed the U.S. on the same day, saying, "Cooperation is better than confrontation, and the rule of law is stronger than force. These principles apply not only to us in the EU but also to Greenland."

Regarding Trump's baseless accusations that the waters around Greenland are full of Chinese and Russian ships, Danish Foreign Minister Rasmussen has already refuted them, pointing out that the scene described by Trump "does not match the facts." He also emphasized, "The claim that Greenland is filled with Chinese investments is not true, and we cannot accept this."

Reuters also cited monitoring data from the ship tracking platform MarineTraffic, confirming that there are no signs of Chinese or Russian ship activity near Greenland's waters.

In response to the U.S. hype, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian stated on the fifth during a regular press conference that China urged the U.S. to stop using the so-called "Chinese threat" as an excuse to pursue its own interests.

Regarding the U.S. government's threat to seize Greenland by force, and stating that this is for national security and to contain China, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning stated on the seventh during a regular press conference that China has always advocated handling relations between countries in accordance with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

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Original: toutiao.com/article/7592890488101880360/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.