A wave of anger surged through Copenhagen this weekend as hundreds of Danish citizens, including veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, gathered in protest outside the U.S. Embassy. Their demonstration wasn’t a spontaneous outburst, but a carefully considered response to recent statements made by former President Trump.
At the heart of the discontent lay Trump’s past suggestion of acquiring Greenland and his dismissive remarks about NATO allies’ contributions during conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Veterans felt a deep sense of betrayal, recalling years of fighting alongside American and British forces.
“They have a feeling that they’ve been betrayed,” explained Carsten Rasmussen, president of the Danish Veterans Association. “They deployed. They fought with the Americans. They fought with the Brits. They fought together. They bled together. And as you have heard here in front of the American embassy today, 52 of them never returned.”
The protest was a stark visual reminder of the sacrifices made. Demonstrators solemnly laid 52 flags, each bearing the name of a fallen Danish soldier, outside the embassy walls. Forty-four Danish soldiers perished in Afghanistan – a disproportionately high number for a nation of just over six million people – with another eight lost in Iraq.
Lieutenant Colonel Niels Christian Koefoed, a veteran of the Afghan war, spoke with quiet intensity. “Behind all these flags, there's a guy, there's a soldier, there's a young man,” he said, emphasizing the human cost of conflict and the sting of being overlooked.
The former President’s comments drew condemnation from other world leaders as well. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer labeled the remarks about NATO allies “insulting and frankly appalling.” While Trump responded with praise for British soldiers, he remained silent regarding the sacrifices of other NATO nations.
Organizers of the Danish protest expressed a profound sense of disappointment. They felt the Trump administration deliberately disregarded Denmark’s unwavering support and combat contributions alongside the U.S. in global crises.
“Denmark has always stood side by side with the USA — and we have showed up in the world’s crisis zones when the USA has asked us to,” a statement from Danish Veterans & Veteran Support declared. “We feel let down and ridiculed.”
The controversy surrounding Greenland also fueled the unrest. A recent discussion centered on the strategic importance of the island as Arctic ice melts and new shipping routes emerge, reshaping the geopolitical landscape.
The U.S. ambassador to NATO previously suggested that NATO had “a tendency to overreact” to the idea of acquiring Greenland, emphasizing the island’s crucial role in securing the Arctic region and protecting North America’s northern flank.
Despite the tensions, some diplomatic efforts offered a glimmer of hope. Meetings between Danish and Greenlandic officials with Vice President Vance and Secretary of State Rubio were described as “constructive,” suggesting a path toward resolution without further escalation.
For the Danish veterans, however, the core issue remained the same: a demand for recognition of their sacrifices and a rebuke of what they perceived as a dismissive and hurtful disregard for their nation’s long-standing alliance with the United States.
