Trump's social media map depicting expanded US territory sparks backlash in Iceland and Denmark

US President Donald Trump has triggered concerns in the North Atlantic after sharing a map on Truth Social during a long holiday weekend. The map, colored with the red, white, and blue stars and stripes of the US flag, depicted the United States sprawling across all of North America, Greenland, and Iceland, without any accompanying explanation. The post recalled Trump’s previous discussions regarding making Canada the 51st US state and his repeated remarks about taking over Greenland, Denmark's self-governing territory.

The post drew swift condemnation from European officials. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen described the map as "disturbing" and "completely inappropriate," stating it indicates that the US president still harbors a "maximalist vision." Meanwhile, Iceland’s Foreign Secretary Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir summoned US Ambassador Billy Long to a meeting and made it clear that the post was entirely unacceptable.

Tensions have been high in the Arctic region since Trump ramped up his rhetoric at the start of the year regarding US control over Greenland. His post came as the European Union sought to reassure Greenland with promises of a stronger partnership and hundreds of millions of euros in investments. Iceland, located 180 miles (290 km) away, was particularly alarmed when Trump repeatedly misnamed their country four times during his remarks on Greenland.

This gaffe prompted Iceland's left-leaning coalition government to advance a referendum on resuming EU membership talks, which had been stalled for a long time, though voters ultimately rejected the measure on August 30. Public discontent in Iceland was also directed at US Ambassador Billy Long, with thousands signing a petition urging the prime minister to reject his credentials after he joked earlier this year about Iceland becoming the 52nd US state. In addition to his actions regarding Greenland and Iceland, Trump has frequently suggested Canada become a US state, launched a trade war with it, renamed Lake Ontario as "Lake America," and recently proposed renaming New Mexico as "New America."