Controlling the territory of Greenland has become US President Donald Trump’s new obsession. This week, the Republican met with senior government officials to develop a plan to take back the island, controlled by Denmark.
This Tuesday (6/1), White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt reported that Trump was exploring several options for commanding Greenland, including the use of armed forces.
However, the Republican’s main proposal is to control the region without having to resort to arms against Denmark, which is part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump’s main plan was to buy Greenland rather than invade it, according to US newspaper The New York Times.
During a meeting with Republican lawmakers on Monday (5/1), Rubio gave details of Donald Trump’s ambitions regarding Greenland. According to the secretary of state, the president has asked advisers to present plans to purchase the territory.
According to the Trump administration, Greenland is considered a strategic country in the face of growing geopolitical conflict in the Arctic.
On Saturday (3/1), the subject returned to the forefront after Katie Miller, wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, posted an image of Greenland covered in the American flag.
Importance of Greenland for Trump
Republican interest in the island is not new. Even under his previous administration, Trump expressed his intention to annex Greenland to the United States.
Back at the White House, he once again defended this idea, asserting that territorial control would be essential to containing adversaries in the polar region.
Greenland occupies a strategic position in the Arctic, a region increasingly contested by world powers.
The United States already maintains a military base on the island dedicated to missile defense, considered essential for monitoring threats from the northern hemisphere.
As climate change advances and ice melts, previously inaccessible shipping routes are beginning to open up, transforming the Arctic into an important trade and military corridor between the Atlantic and the North Pole.
In addition, the island has significant reserves of rare earth minerals, essential for cutting-edge technologies such as batteries, cell phones and electric vehicles – a market now largely dominated by China.
Studies also highlight the potential for oil and gas reserves on Greenland’s continental shelf.
Legal and political limits
Although Trump says “there is a good chance” the United States could obtain Greenland “without military force,” annexation would face enormous legal and political obstacles.
Armed intervention would violate the fundamental principles of NATO, of which Denmark and the United States are founding members, in addition to provoking a strong international reaction.
Greenland gained autonomy in 1979 and, since 2009, has had the right to hold independence referendums. Despite this, foreign policy and defense remain the responsibility of Copenhagen, and the local economy depends heavily on Danish subsidies.
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