US President Donald Trump’s latest social media post has sparked concern across the North Atlantic after he shared a map depicting the United States stretching across North America and extending to Greenland and Iceland.

The image, posted on Truth Social over the long holiday weekend and coloured in the red, white and blue of the US flag, offered no explanation. However, it revived Trump’s previous remarks about Canada becoming the 51st US state and his repeated calls for the United States to take control of Greenland, prompting sharp reactions from Denmark and Iceland.

Denmark Calls Trump’s Post ‘Disturbing’

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen criticised the post, describing it as inappropriate and saying it reflected what he called Trump’s continuing “maximalist vision”.

“It’s disturbing and, in many ways, completely inappropriate. It’s obviously a sign that the US president still harbours some kind of maximalist vision in his own mind. We need to rein that in,” Rasmussen told Danish national broadcaster DR on Tuesday.

Greenland is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark and has been at the centre of renewed geopolitical tensions since Trump intensified his rhetoric earlier this year about the United States taking control of the Arctic territory.

The latest map appeared to extend the United States not only across Canada and Greenland but also into Iceland, another NATO member in the North Atlantic.

Iceland Summons US Ambassador

Iceland responded to the post by summoning US Ambassador Billy Long, according to national broadcaster RUV.

Foreign and Defence Secretary Thorgerdur Katrn Gunnarsdottir called Long for a meeting as concern in Iceland grew over Trump’s repeated references to Greenland and the country’s apparent inclusion in the map.

Iceland lies around 180 miles, or 290 km, from Greenland and has faced increased political debate over its security and geopolitical position since Trump stepped up his comments about US control of Greenland.

Concern intensified after Trump mistakenly referred to Iceland four times while speaking about Greenland.

EU Referendum Brought Forward Amid Geopolitical Concerns

The gaffe contributed to Iceland’s left-leaning coalition government bringing forward a referendum, originally planned for next year, on whether the country should resume long-stalled negotiations to join the European Union.

The proposal was partly promoted as a way of strengthening Iceland’s ties with Europe and providing greater protection against geopolitical instability.

However, voters rejected the measure in the August 30 referendum.

Trump’s earlier comments involving Iceland had also triggered criticism over the appointment of Long as the US ambassador.

Thousands of Icelanders signed a petition urging the prime minister to reject Long after he joked earlier this year about Iceland becoming the 52nd US state and said he could become its governor.

Long later apologised for the remarks and took up his post in Reykjavik last month.

Canada Also Drawn Into Trump’s Territorial Rhetoric

Trump’s latest post has also renewed attention on his frequent remarks about Canada becoming part of the United States.

The US president has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st state, while relations between the two countries have also been strained by a trade war launched by Washington.

Trump recently added to tensions by moving to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America”.

Over the long holiday weekend, he also suggested renaming the state of New Mexico as “New America”, further adding to the controversy surrounding his latest Truth Social post.

The map and the subsequent diplomatic reactions have once again brought Trump’s comments on territorial expansion and US control over parts of North America and the Arctic into focus, with Denmark and Iceland publicly pushing back against the latest development.

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