Donald Trump has again said the US needs Greenland and Denmark cannot be relied on to protect the island, hours after talks in Washington ended without agreement.

Denmark’s foreign minister said there was a “fundamental disagreement” with the United States over the issue. Lars Lokke Rasmussen said the meeting with Vice-President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House had been “frank but constructive”. But he said President Trump’s stated plan to “conquer” Greenland was “totally unacceptable”.

All sides at the meeting between the US, Denmark and Greenland did agree to set-up a high-level working group to discuss the future of the autonomous Danish territory. Rasmussen said there were “red lines” the US could not cross, and the working group would meet in the coming weeks in an effort to find a compromise. He added that Denmark and Greenland were open to the possibility of the US opening more military bases on the island.

Following the meeting, Denmark vowed to send armed forces to the island and its European allies offered support. Sweden pledged to send armed forces to Greenland at Denmark’s request. France’s foreign minister said the country planned to open a consulate on the island. Germany said it would send a “reconnaissance team” to Greenland to “explore the general conditions for possible military contributions, in order to support Denmark in ensuring security in the region”.

Clive Myrie presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Katya Adler.

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