French President Emmanuel Macron warned that Greenland is “not to be sold” nor “to be taken” in a key visit to the strategic Arctic territory coveted by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The French leader was visiting Greenland — a self-governing part of Denmark with the right to declare independence that U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to take over — ahead of a trip to Canada for the G7 leaders' summit.

French President Emmanuel Macron touched down in Greenland on Sunday, for an official visit designed to bolster European support for the Danish territory, which is still batting away advances from the Trump administration.

PARIS (Reuters) -Greenland is a European territory and it is normal that Europe and France show their interest, French Foreign Minister Jean Noel Barrot told RTL radio on Sunday when asked about French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to the Arctic island.

"Greenland is not for taking, and neither are Antarctica nor the high seas for sale," Macron said during his opening speech in the French coastal city of Nice at a United Nations conference on protecting the oceans.