Iceland’s foreign minister summoned US Ambassador Billy Long on Tuesday after President Donald Trump shared a map depicting Iceland and several other territories under the American flag, Icelandic media reported.
Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir called Long in for a meeting over the image posted by Trump on his Truth Social account.
Iceland’s foreign ministry said officials made clear during the meeting that the post was “entirely inappropriate.”
The map showed the United States, Canada, Greenland, Iceland and Central America covered by the US flag.
Trump posted the image without providing an explanation.
Iceland pushes back on US territorial imagery
The incident comes amid Trump’s repeated calls for US control of Greenland, the autonomous territory that forms part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
Trump has also repeatedly mentioned Iceland while discussing Greenland, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos and during remarks at the White House.
While White House officials initially rejected suggestions that Trump had confused Iceland with Greenland, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio later acknowledged that the president had mixed up the two territories.
Trump has previously shared images portraying Greenland under US flags or other American symbols, fuelling concern in Denmark and Greenland over his territorial ambitions.
Map sparks criticism in Iceland
The latest post prompted criticism in Iceland, with Sonja Thorbergsdottir, chair of the Federation of State and Municipal Employees, calling the image “disrespectful.”
“This is not how civilized nations should behave towards one another,” she said.
