Donald Trump has been very vocal recently about his desire to own Greenland. Who currently owns Greenland, and why does Trump want Greenland?
Greenland, like most of the Americas, was initially inhabited by indigenous people, who still make up about 90% of the residents. Norse Vikings from Iceland moved into Greenland in the 900s. During the early Middle Ages, the Scandinavian populations began to form kingdoms, with Norway leading the way in 872 AD when King Harald Fairhair unified a group of small chiefdoms. Denmark followed up around 965 AD under King Harald Bluetooth. Denmark, Norway, and Sweden all battled for prominence throughout the Middle Ages. In the 1300s, all three of these nations united and laid claim to Greenland.
Greenland then lost touch with Europe and suffered from climate change during the Little Ice Age, when the Scandinavian settlements disappeared. Denmark renewed colonization of Greenland in 1721, and Danish sovereignty over Greenland was recognized internationally in 1921. In 1953, Greenland gained a constitution which specified that Greenland was not a colony, but an integral part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Unlike the United States and Puerto Rico, Denmark followed up on the announcement, giving Greenland full participation in the kingdom’s parliament.
Greenland is, like the Faroe Islands, a self-governing dependency of Denmark. Like the Faroe Islands, Greenland plans to work toward independence, but is not currently willing to give up the economic benefits of Danish citizenship. Greenland therefore is part of Denmark.
Do Greenland and Denmark want Greenland to become a U.S. state?
In a word, no. Polls in Greenland have found that only a tiny fraction of Greenlanders have any interest in joining the United States. Greenland’s elected leaders have also made it clear that they are not on board. “Enough is enough. No more pressure. No more insinuations. No more fantasies of annexation,” said Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has been equally blunt. “It makes absolutely no sense to talk about the United States needing to take over Greenland. The U.S. has no right to annex one of the three countries in the Danish Kingdom,” she wrote in a statement. “Stop threatening a historically close ally and another country and people who have made it very clear that they are not for sale.”
While the United States has previously attempted to buy Greenland, it is clear that Denmark is not willing to consider being bought. An alternative that Trump hints at would be an invasion of Greenland and an attempt at seizure of the territory from Denmark, in opposition to international law.
An alternative, should Greenland decide to become independent, would be a Compact of Free Association between Greenland and the United States.
Why does Trump want Greenland?
Members of Congress as well as the general public keep asking why Trump wants Greenland when Greenland has so clearly said it does not want to be part of the United States. While Trump has insisted that it is a matter of national security, it is clear that the United States already has very flexible arrangements for security and military buildup in Greenland. A recent social media post from the president suggests that China and Russia may also have plans for imperialist aggression on the Danish territory.
This is the same thinking that led to the annexation of Hawaii. In spite of the Monroe Doctrine, the United States worried that European or Asian powers might grab Hawaii. The U.S. had major business interests in Hawaii, and determined to annex it before Japan or Britain got to it.
Greenland, like Venezuela, is mineral-rich. Greenland has known deposits of rare earth minerals and uranium. However, Trump has stated that his interest in Greenland is based on security, not on minerals. Malte Humpert, founder and senior fellow at The Arctic Institute, has said that “The idea of turning Greenland into America’s rare-earth factory is science fiction. It’s just completely bonkers.” Nonetheless, observers continue to see Greenland’s mineral resources as a possible reason for Trump’s interest in the Danish territory.
It has been suggested that Trump’s interest in Greenland is part of his desire to gain dominance over the Western Hemisphere, and the President has also stated that he needed to possess the territory because feels it would be “psychologically needed for success.” He elaborated that “ownership gives you a thing that you can’t do, whether you’re talking about a lease or a treaty” and “things and elements that you can’t get from just signing a document.”
