President Donald Trump’s relentless push for the United States to acquire Greenland has brought the sprawling Arctic territory closer to Denmark, former US ambassador to Denmark Alan Leventhal told a group gathered in Mashpee on Thursday.
Greenland is committed to having its independence, and Leventhal, who served under President Biden, does not believe it will become the 51st or 52nd state.
“This is all getting worked out,” he told an audience at the Willowbend Country Club on July 24.
Leventhal, who served as U.S. ambassador from 2022 to 2025, said when he first arrived in Denmark he felt a deep sense of pride to be representing the U.S. “You realize the power of the United States, and the importance of the United States,” he said.
Prior to his appointment as ambassador, Leventhal was the chairman and chief executive officer of Beacon Capital Partners, according to the U.S. Embassy and Consulate in the Kingdom of Denmark.
At the Mashpee event, Leventhal and author Casey Sherman had a running dialogue about the relationship between Denmark and the U.S.
Leventhal on the U.S. and Greenland
In an interview with the Times before the Mashpee talk, Leventhal said he supports President Trump’s “focus on the High North, on the Arctic, and on minerals.”
The United States, he said, has a number of reasons to be focused on Greenland: its significant and rare earth minerals, China referring to itself as a “‘near Arctic state” and building ice breakers, Russia’s dominance of the Arctic air space — considering the location of U.S. Space Force Base Pituffik.
“The Danes would do anything for the U.S., Greenland would be supportive as well. We want another base, we’ll get another base, we want rights to minerals, they’ll work out rights to the minerals. The only thing Denmark will not do is they will not tell Greenland what their future is,” said Leventhal. He believes this is where the tension lies.
What do younger generations in Denmark think of the U.S.?
“I learned early on that young people in Denmark don’t have the same emotional connection to the U.S. as the older generation,” said Leventhal.
The younger generation is too far removed from World War II. “Anyone who came out of (the German occupation) taught their kids and their grandchildren, ‘We have to be close to America, because America will ensure our freedom,'” said Leventhal.
Leventhal decided early in his ambassadorship he would visit schools and speak with students about the U.S. What he found was a great concern about the current political climate in the U.S., to which Leventhal recalled the political climate during the 1960s Civil Rights Movement.
“Our democracy was being tested, about you know who brought us through — my generation. And you know who is going to bring us through the challenges of today? This generation,” said Leventhal.
This concern is present in the U.S. in conversations he’s had with American youth, he said. “In general they are worried about their future, because the dialogue and the approach to things have changed materially (since) the election,” Leventhal said. That, however, is what America voted for, he said.
“I fundamentally believe in the message: We always emerge stronger. We emerge as a more caring, a more tolerant, a better society. But you know, we’re going to have to work through this,” said Leventhal.
Leventhal hoped that the audience would leave with a sense of optimism and pride for the U.S., whether or not Americans agree with the current policies of the administration.
“America is beyond any president. I mean, we’re America,” he said.
Desiree Nikfardjam is a reporter covering breaking and trending news. She graduated from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. You can reach her at DNikfardjam@gannett.com.
