Sir Keir Starmer has been urged by senior British military figures to be much tougher in resisting Donald Trump’s threat to take over Greenland.
Former defence secretary Sir Ben Wallace accused President Trump of attempting to “thieve” Greenland’s mineral assets and said the prime minister must be less “mealy-mouthed” in condemning his actions.
He was backed by former Nato deputy supreme allied commander General Sir Richard Shirreff, who said the British government “ducks and weaves” instead of taking a firm stance on defending Greenland.
Sir Ben, Conservative defence secretary from 2019 to 2023, said it was vital for Britain to protect Greenland, which is part of Denmark, a Nato country.
That meant standing up to President Trump, who “like Putin … thinks the Europeans are weak and does not respect mealy-mouthed statements”.
Sir Keir publicly backed the Danish prime minister after she demanded that the US stop threatening to take over the territory. On Tuesday, he and other European leaders spoke out over the threats, insisting they will “not stop defending” Greenland’s territorial integrity.
But the White House later said that using the US military is “always an option” for the president, days after it revealed President Trump has been discussing a “range of options” to acquire Greenland.
Sir Ben also questioned President Trump’s motives for wanting to take over the Arctic island. President Trump has been making territorial claims in relation to Greenland since January 2025.
Sir Ben said: “This is not about security, it is about Donald Trump wanting to thieve, basically, minerals and rights from Greenland.
“It’s a bit like what we are seeing in Venezuela, where oil is being taken from them at a price set by Donald Trump and sold in the US.
“All we do is mince around in a mealy-mouthed fashion.”
A US attack on Greenland could signal the end for Nato, argued Sir Ben.
“To attack another member, which Denmark is, and a loyal member – they supported them [the US] in 9/11 [the attacks on the US World Trade Center] and sent troops to Afghanistan – would very signal the demise of a large part of Nato.”
It was important to confront the “reality” of dealing with President Trump, he said.
The US President believed in global “spheres of influence” like Russia’s President Putin – not in “the traditional open rule of law where might is right, not fairness is right”, Sir Ben told the BBC.
His remarks were echoed by former army commander Sir Richard, who said Europe – including Britain – must show “real strength in supporting Denmark”.
He added: “A covenant without a sword is useless – there has got to be a sword behind it. We have had talk talk talk … Western governments, particularly this one, again and again Britain ducks and weaves and talks only.”
Sir Keir has come under fire after being reluctant to directly criticise Saturday’s raid on Caracas that saw then-president Nicolas Maduro captured and taken to New York.
On Monday, amid claims that President Trump may have broken the law, Sir Keir would only say that international law must be the “anchor” for Venezuela’s future and that it was up to the US to justify its actions.
On Tuesday, health secretary Wes Streeting defended Sir Keir’s response to US military action in Venezuela, saying he is choosing his words “wisely”.
Mr Streeting said the PM was focused on “how to make a challenging situation better, not worse” for both Europe’s collective security and the Venezuelan people.
He said: “I appreciate there are others who have been more strident and have been more critical of the United States.
“The prime minister has a different responsibility, and he is choosing his words carefully and wisely to try and influence how events unfold from here on.”
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