One of Donald Trump's top policy advisors has refused to rule out whether the US would authorise military action to enforce a takeover of Greenland.
Stephen Miller, Mr Trump's deputy chief of staff for policy, said on Monday, local time, the Trump administration believed Greenland should become an American territory in order for the US to "protect and defend NATO" in the Arctic circle.
"It has been the formal position fo the US government since the beginning of this administration … that Greenland should be part of the United States," Mr Miller said in an interview aired on CNN.
"The United States is the power of NATO. For the Untied States to secure the Arctic region, to protect NATO and NATO interests, obviously Greenland should be part of the United States.
"Nobody's going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland."
Mr Miller's comments came hours after Denmark's prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, warned that any US move to take Greenland by force would destroy 80 years of transatlantic security links.
Ms Frederiksen was responding to comments made by Mr Trump on Sunday, in which he repeated his desire to annex the mineral-rich Arctic territory.
"We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security," Mr Trump said.
US military intervention in Venezuela has reignited fears about Mr Trump's designs on the autonomous Danish territory, which has untapped rare earth deposits and could be a vital player as polar ice melts, opening up new shipping routes.
Ms Frederiksen blasted the president's comments and warned of catastrophic consequences.
"If the United States chooses to attack another NATO country militarily, then everything stops," Ms Frederiksen said.
"That is, including our NATO and thus the security that has been provided since the end of the Second World War."
The US, Canada and 10 Western European nations were the first to sign the NATO Treaty in 1949, forming what is the world's largest and most powerful military alliance.
The treaty commits allies to protect each other, ensuring that "the security of its European member countries is inseparably linked to that of its North American member countries".
Trump 'should be taken seriously' on Greenland
Greenland is on the shortest route for missiles between Russia and the United States, and the US has a military base there.
Mr Trump called repeatedly during his presidential transition and the early months of his second term for US jurisdiction over Greenland, and has not ruled out military force to take control of the island.
"Let's talk about Greenland in 20 days," Mr Trump said on Sunday, further deepening fears the US was planning an intervention in the near future.
Ms Frederiksen said Trump "should be taken seriously" when he says he wants Greenland.
"We will not accept a situation where we and Greenland are threatened in this way," she added.
Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen told the US to back off, while several European countries and the European Union rushed to back Denmark.
Mr Nielsen told Mr Trump on social media: "That's enough now. No more pressure. No more insinuations. No more fantasies of annexation."
On Monday, he called for renewed contact with the US and urged against panic.
"The situation is not such that the United States can conquer Greenland. That is not the case," Mr Nielsen said in Greenland's capital Nuuk.
"We must not panic. We must restore the good cooperation we once had."
Mr Trump also mocked Denmark's efforts at boosting Greenland's national security posture, saying the Danes had added "one more dog sled" to the Arctic territory's arsenal.
He appointed Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as special envoy to Greenland last month.
Mr Landry has publicly expressed support for incorporating Greenland into the United States.
Greenland 'should go into preparation mode'
The US rattled European leaders with the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and the declaration Washington would "run" the Latin American country indefinitely and tap its huge oil reserves.
Mr Trump has similarly ramped up pressure on Greenland over recent months, saying in December that Russian and Chinese ships were "all over" the territory's coast.
China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the US should "stop using the so-called China threat as an excuse to seek personal gain".
Aaja Chemnitz, who represents Greenland in the Danish parliament, accused Mr Trump of "spreading lies about Chinese and Russian warships".
"The people of Greenland should go into preparation mode," she told AFP.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul suggested NATO could discuss strengthening Greenland's protection, while European Union foreign policy spokesperson Anitta Hipper told reporters the bloc was committed to defending the territorial integrity of its members.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said "only Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark" could decide the territory's future — sentiments reflected in statements from the leaders of Finland, Sweden and Norway.
French foreign ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux told local TV that "borders cannot be changed by force" and added that his country felt "solidarity" with Denmark.
The flare-up came after former Trump aide Katie Miller posted an image to social media of Greenland in the colours of the US flag with the caption "SOON".
Ms Miller is the wife of Trump adviser, Mr Miller, who is widely seen as the architect of many Trump policies, guiding the president's hard-line immigration decisions and domestic agenda.
In response to Ms Miller's post, Denmark's ambassador to Washington, Jesper Møller Sørensen, said his country was already working with Washington to boost security in the Arctic.
"We are close allies and should continue to work together as such," Mr Sørensen wrote.
UN warns of greater instability
During an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council, both allies and adversaries blasted Mr Trump's intervention in Venezuela and his suggestion of expanding military action to countries such as Colombia and Mexico over drug trafficking accusations.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned the capture of Mr Maduro could worsen stability in Venezuela and the wider region.
"I am deeply concerned about the possible intensification of instability in the country, the potential impact on the region, and the precedent it may set for how relations between and among states are conducted," he said in a statement delivered by UN political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo.
China's deputy UN envoy, Sun Lei, said Beijing was "deeply shocked by and strongly condemns the unilateral, illegal, and bullying acts of the US".
US Ambassador Mike Waltz hit back, saying the US "successfully carried out a surgical law enforcement operation" against what he described as "two indicted fugitives of American justice".
"There is no war against Venezuela or its people. We are not occupying a country," he said.
As one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, the United States, along with Russia, China, Britain and France, can veto any action.
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