Donald Trump is still “clear” on his desire to “acquire” Greenland, the White House says, despite talks and European troops arriving there. Elsewhere, the US has seized another Venezuela-linked oil tanker. Listen to the Daily on whether Antarctica is a time bomb for Trump as you scroll.
Thursday 15 January 2026 19:45, UK
We’re just hearing the first reaction from Maria Corina Machado, Venezuela’s opposition leader, who has been meeting Donald Trump at the White House.
She says the meeting was “great” and went “very well”.
Machado – 2025’s Nobel Peace Prize winner – would not say if she gave Trump the prize, as she previously suggested she might.
We’ll bring you more from her throughout the evening as we get it.
With Maria Corina Machado inside the White House for private talks with Donald Trump, crowds have gathered outside the gates.
Venezuelan flags are being waved and a group of people can be seen holding a sign saying “welcome” for the oppostion leader.
As a reminder, Machado won 2025’s Nobel Peace Prize – an honour Trump himself clearly wanted – for her efforts campaigning against Nicolas Maduro’s repressive regime in Venezuela.
Trump’s US snatched Maduro to put him on trial in the US for drug-related offences, in an audacious raid, earlier this month.
But most of Maduro’s government remains in place, with Trump’s administration seemingly happy to deal with them.
Our US correspondent James Matthews is outside the White House as Donald Trump holds talks with Venezuela’s opposition leader.
He says Maria Corina Machado is seeking reassurance from the US president and wants to know if she “still fits in to the picture”.
It comes after Trump previously said Machado lacks respect and support in Venezuela.
Matthews explains Machado will want to know that “her politics fit into the long-term game plan for Trump for Venezuela, beyond access to its oil resources”.
Watch his analysis in full…
Karoline Leavitt says talks between the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland with US vice president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio were “productive”.
“It was a good meeting, the two sides agreed to establish a working group of individuals who will continue to have technical talks on the acquisition of Greenland,” she says.
“Those talks will take place, I’m told, every two to three weeks.
“This is a conversation the administration intends to keep having with the Danes and with the respective delegation from Greenland.
“But the president has made his priority quite clear, he wants the United States to acquire Greenland, he thinks it’s best for national security to do that.”
Leavitt adds that European countries sending troops to Greenland won’t affect Trump’s decision on acquiring the territory.
Earlier, we reported on troops from France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden making their way to the Arctic island.
Denmark said the operation will “strengthen our ability to operate in the area”, with Trump having claimed only American control can protect the Arctic territory from Russia and China.
Hours earlier, the foreign ministers of Greenland and Denmark held high-stakes talks with US vice president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio.
But speaking after the meeting, they said that there was still a “fundamental disagreement” on the future of the Danish territory.
Karoline Leavitt says Venezuela’s leaders have been “extremely cooperative” with the US
Trump spoke to Delcy Rodriguez this week, Leavitt says, and US secretary of state Marco Rubio and other officials “have been in constant communication” with her and other members of the interim government in Venezuela.
“They have been extremely cooperative. They have thus far met all of the demands and requests of the United States and of the president. And I think you have all seen that play out,” Leavitt says.
“We obviously had a $500m energy deal that was struck in large part because of the cooperation from Rodriguez.
“The president likes what he’s seeing and we’ll expect that cooperation to continue.”
Karoline Leavitt is asked about Donald Trump’s previous comments on Venezuela’s opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado, in which he said she lacks respect and support in the country.
“I think the president’s assessment was based on realities on the ground,” Leavitt replies.
“It was a realistic assessment based on what the president was reading and hearing from his advisers and national security team.
“At this moment in time, his opinion on that matter has not changed.”
As a reminder, Trump is meeting Machado in the Oval Office right now.
Leavitt is also asked about Trump saying he would like there to be elections in Venezuela when the time is right, and whether she has an update on when they might be.
“He is committed to hopefully seeing elections in Venezuela one day,” she says.
“I don’t have an updated timetable for you today.”
Karoline Leavitt is asked about Donald Trump’s meeting with Venezuela’s opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado.
She confirms that the talks are under way and says Trump has been “looking forward to this meeting”.
“He was expecting it to be a good and positive discussion,” she adds.
Leavitt also describes Machado as being a “remarkable and brave voice” for many of the people of Venezuela.
However, Leavitt also responds to a question about whether Trump trusts the remaining members of Nicolas Maduro’s regime, saying that the Venezuelan government is being “extremely cooperative” and the president “likes what he’s seeing”.
We’re now hearing from Donald Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who is holding a news briefing at the White House.
Leavitt is usually asked about a range of topics when she opens the floor to questions, so we’ll keep you updated if she discusses Venezuela or Greenland.
Watch along in the live stream at the top of this page.
While the world’s attention has been on Greenland, should Antarctica also be in the geopolitical spotlight?
The US has been withdrawing its influence over the continent, allowing Russia and China to expand their presence.
Meanwhile, Antarctica’s vast ice sheets keep melting and its research community is in a battle against time to understand why it’s happening so quickly.
Sky’s science editor Tom Clarke speaks to Sky News’ Daily podcast about his recent trip to the seventh continent – listen below…
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has arrived at the White House ahead of her private meeting with Donald Trump.
Talks were scheduled to get under way at around 5.30pm UK time, but it’s closed to the press.
We’ll bring you any updates from the meeting as soon as we get them.
Be the first to get Breaking News
Install the Sky News app for free