“Our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. So, Iceland’s already cost us a lot of money,” Trump said at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday.

White House insists Trump didn’t confuse Greenland for Iceland despite video of him doing so multiple times

"Our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. So, Iceland's already cost us a lot of money," Trump said at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday.

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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January 21, 2026 6:10 p.m. ET

Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 21. Credit:

Fabrice COFFRINI/AFP via Getty

- President Trump called Greenland "Iceland" at least four times during his remarks at the World Economic Forum.

- White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that no such mistake occurred.

- A White House spokesperson said that Trump "delivered a historic speech" at the WEF and did not acknowledge the Iceland gaffe.

President Trump brought up Iceland while discussing Greenland at a recent press conference — but the White House is insisting that he didn't make any mistakes.

During his remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday, the president said "Iceland" at least four times during broader comments about a proposed acquisition of Greenland.

Libbey Dean, a White House reporter for NewsNation, pointed out that "President Trump appeared to mix up Greenland and Iceland around three times" in an X post analyzing the remarks.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to Dean in her own X post that denied any mistake on Trump's part (and misspelling the reporter's first name).

"No he didn’t, Libby," Leavitt wrote. "His written remarks referred to Greenland as a 'piece of ice' because that’s what it is. You’re the only one mixing anything up here."

Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 21.

Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty

About 38 minutes into his appearance at WEF, Trump said, "I'm helping Europe. I'm helping NATO. And until the last few days, when I told them about Iceland, they loved me."

Within two minutes, Trump invoked Iceland three more times: "They're not there for us on Iceland," he said of NATO. "That I can tell you. I mean, our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland. So, Iceland's already cost us a lot of money."

Trump did also describe the territory as a "big, beautiful piece of ice," adding, "It's hard to call it land. It's our big piece of ice."

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Reached for comment by **, a White House spokesperson didn't address Trump's references to Iceland, but said he "delivered a historic speech in Davos laying out America’s compelling national security interests involving Greenland" and later "announced the framework for a future deal with respect" to the region.

Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to take over Greenland, which is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. He confirmed he was exploring ways to purchase the island during his first presidential term in 2019, and reaffirmed his commitment to acquire the territory in early 2025.

Donald Trump at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on Jan. 13.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty

The president ramped up his rhetoric around Greenland after the U.S. kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in early January. The White House said that it was considering military intervention to obtain the territory, and Trump said, "I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace" after being snubbed for the Nobel Peace Prize.

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Trump later threatened numerous European nations with tariffs if the U.S. did not obtain Greenland by the beginning of February, and leaders from both Greenland and Denmark said that they had no interest in U.S. intervention in the region. Trump walked back his threats of military action and tariffs on Wednesday, and announced that he "formed the framework of a future deal" on Greenland with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.**

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