Danish veterans stage protest outside US Embassy

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, staged a silent protest Saturday outside the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen in response to the Trump administration's threats to take over Greenland and belittling their combat contributions.

“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. We feel let down and ridiculed by the Trump Administration, which is deliberately disregarding Denmark’s combat side by side with the USA,” Danish Veterans & Veteran Support said in a statement.

“Words cannot describe how much it hurts us that Denmark’s contributions and sacrifices in the fight for democracy, peace and freedom are being forgotten in the White House,” it said.

Veterans first gathered at a monument honoring fallen Danish service members then began marching to the nearby U.S. Embassy, where they will observe five minutes of silence — one each for Denmark’s army, air force, navy, emergency management agency and police.

Danish veterans are furious at how the White House rhetoric disregards the right to self-determination of Greenland, a territory of NATO ally Denmark. They also strongly object to Trump’s claim that Denmark is incapable of protecting the West’s security interests in the Arctic.

Forty-four Danish soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, the highest per capita death toll among coalition forces. Eight more died in Iraq.

Tensions were further inflamed Tuesday when 44 Danish flags — one for every Danish soldier killed in Afghanistan — that had been placed in front of the embassy were removed by embassy staff.

The State Department later said that, as a general rule, guard staff remove items left behind following demonstrations and other “legitimate exercises of free speech." The flags were returned to those who left them, it said.

Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, stage a silent protest as they march" from Kastellet in Copenhagen to the American embassy in Copenhagen on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, stage a silent protest as they march" from Kastellet in Copenhagen to the American embassy in Copenhagen on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, stage a silent protest as they march" from Kastellet in Copenhagen to the American embassy in Copenhagen on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, stage a silent protest as they march" from Kastellet in Copenhagen to the American embassy in Copenhagen on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Hundreds of Danish veterans, many of whom fought alongside U.S. troops, stage a silent protest as they march" from Kastellet in Copenhagen to the American embassy in Copenhagen on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. (Emil Helms/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday aimed at restoring “order, fairness and stability” to college athletics.

The order directs federal agencies to bolster the effectiveness of key rules on transferring, eligibility and pay-for-play by evaluating whether violations of such rules render a university unfit for federal grants and contracts.

The order also calls on the appropriate governing body to update these rules to restore financial stability and protect the future of all college sports, including women’s and Olympic sports by:

— establishing clear, consistent, and fair eligibility limits, including a five-year participation window;

— setting structured transfer rules for academic and athletic continuity;

— ensuring medical care for student-athletes;

— implementing revenue-sharing in a manner that protects and expands opportunities in women’s and Olympic sports;

— banning improper financial arrangements including pay-for-play agreements facilitated by collectives and similar entities; and

— establishing protections against unscrupulous agent conduct.

The order directs the Administrator of General Services and the Department of Education to increase data collection across college athletics to ensure compliance and directs the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and the Attorney General to take appropriate enforcement actions.

The order also calls on Congress to “quickly” pass legislation to address these issues.

President Donald Trump pauses as he finishes speaking about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool)