Trump is not letting up What makes Greenland so important for the USA - especially now
Trump would like to take Greenland into US ownership, as he has already stated several times - including again shortly before the parliamentary elections on the island this Tuesday. What exactly is behind this?
12.03.2025, 00:00
12.03.2025, 13:13
dpa
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- US President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed an interest in Greenland. His move is part of an aggressive "America First" foreign policy agenda.
- The self-governing territory of Denmark has gained important strategic significance - partly due to climate change.
- The melting of the ice sheet is revealing Greenland's mineral wealth, and the ongoing melting of sea ice is opening up the once mythical Northwest Passage through the Arctic
When US President Donald Trump first mooted the idea of buying Greenland in 2019, people thought it was a joke. But now no one is laughing. Since Trump returned to office on January 20, he has reiterated his interest in Greenland several times, including again on his social media platform Truth Social shortly before the parliamentary elections on the island on Tuesday.
His push is part of an aggressive "America First" foreign policy agenda, which is reflected in threats to take over the Panama Canal and statements that Canada should become the 51st state of the USA, among other things.
Why the interest?
In a nutshell: Growing international tensions, global warming and the changing global economy have put Greenland at the center of the debate on global trade and security. And Trump wants to ensure that the US controls this resource-rich country, which can be seen as a gatekeeper to access North America from the Arctic and North Atlantic.
What is Greenland's status?
So far, the island has been a self-governing territory of Denmark, a long-time US ally, which has strongly opposed Trump's request. Denmark has also recognized Greenland's right to independence at any time it wishes.
In light of Trump's statements and widespread calls for Greenlanders to be left to determine their own destiny, the island's head of government has called early parliamentary elections for (today) Tuesday. The world's largest island is home to around 56,000 people, most of whom belong to the Inuit ethnic group - and until now have been largely ignored by the rest of the world.
What has changed?
Global warming is thinning the Arctic ice, creating a north-western shipping route for international trade and reigniting competition between Russia, China and other countries for access to minerals in the region.
"Let's be clear: We are about to enter the Arctic century, and its most defining feature will be Greenland's meteoric rise, enduring importance and ubiquitous influence," says Dwayne Memezes of the Polar Research and Policy Initiative, a think tank in London. "Greenland - located at the crossroads of North America, Europe and Asia and with enormous resource potential - will only become more strategically significant, courted by all the powers great and small. One is quite eager to go a step further and buy it."
These factors are driving US interest in Greenland:
Arctic competition
In the wake of the Cold War, the Arctic was largely an area of international cooperation. But climate change, the hunt for scarce resources and growing international tensions resulting from Russia's invasion of Ukraine are now driving renewed competition in the region.
Strategic importance
Greenland lies off the north-eastern coast of Canada, with more than two thirds of its territory located within the Arctic Circle. This has made the country extremely important for the defense of North America since the Second World War, when the US occupied it to ensure it did not fall into the hands of Nazi Germany. And it is vital to protect essential North Atlantic shipping lanes.
The US has maintained bases on the island since the war, and the Pacific Space Base - the former Thule Air Force Base - plays an important role for the US and NATO in missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance. Greenland also guards part of the so-called GUIK gap (GUIK stands for Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom), where NATO monitors Russian naval movements in the North Atlantic.
Natural resources
Greenland has large deposits of so-called rare earth minerals, which are needed to manufacture everything from computers and smartphones to batteries and solar and wind energy technologies. The US Geological Survey has also identified potential oil and natural gas deposits off the coast. The Greenlanders would like to exploit these resources, but strict environmental protection rules apply. In addition, the island's harsh climatic conditions raise the question of the extent to which extraction would even be feasible.
Climate change
Melting ice sheets are revealing Greenland's mineral wealth, and the ongoing melting of sea ice is opening up the once mythical Northwest Passage through the Arctic. Greenland is strategically located along two potential routes through the Arctic that would shorten the duration of voyages between the North Atlantic and Pacific and allow the Suez and Panama Canal bottlenecks to be bypassed. Although it is unlikely that these routes will be commercially viable in the near future - it is likely to take many years - the idea is nevertheless attracting attention.
Chinese interest
In 2018, China declared itself a "pro-arctic state" in an effort to gain more influence in the region. China has also announced plans to build a "polar silk road" as part of its global Belt and Road Initiative, an infrastructure project to create economic links with countries around the world. The then US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo dismissed China's push on the Arctic, asking: "Do we want to turn the Arctic Ocean into a new South China Sea, burdened by militarization and competing territorial claims?". A Chinese-backed rare earth project in Greenland came to a halt after the local government banned uranium mining in 2021.
Independence
The law by which Denmark extended Greenland's autonomy in 2009 also enshrined the island's right to independence under international law. Polls show that a majority of Greenlanders are in favor of independence, but there are differing opinions on when this should happen. The possibility of independence raises the issue of outside interference that could get in the way of US interests in the country.
