President Trump's plan to send representatives to Greenland this week has angered political leaders on the island's territory. The island's territory sees it as an active escalation of his threat to seize the area if necessary.
Trump has not kept his designs a secret in Greenland, Denmark's semi-automatic territory. A few times after returning to his oval office, he repeated his threat of gaining it through financial transactions or military force.
The responses of Greenland and Danish leaders are polite and steadfast, saying the island is not for sale.
However, a visit from second lady Ushavance this week and national security adviser Mike Waltz elicited a more exciting response. Prime Minister Mute Boulup Egede told local newspaper Selmitzak that their expected arrival, which will only take two weeks after Greenland held parliamentary elections, was “very aggressive,” and “the only purpose is to show power over us.” Danish Prime Minister Mette Fredericksen assaulted the Trump administration on Tuesday, calling it “unacceptable pressure.”
“When the Greenlandic government is acting, at this point, it is not possible to personally visit with official representatives of other countries,” Fredericken added.
So why is Trump determined to own Greenland? This is the window into his thinking.
Greenland is in a strategic area.
Most of Greenland is in areas where global powers are competing as global forces are close to the emerging transport corridors that accelerate undeveloped natural resources and global trade. Already, melting of the Arctic ice has transformed once almost disadvantaged areas into highly competitive commercial areas. This claims as more ships cross the Arctic circle, across countries with local lands, and as many people as possible on the seabed.
According to the US Navy Institute, the routes between Asia and Europe, or Asia and the US, are about 40% shorter in the Arctic than in the Suez or Panama Canal. It draws into question who controls the ocean there for both financial and security purposes, especially given that the claimants happen to be a geopolitical superpower.
Only five countries can claim to extend the US continental shelf to the Arctic Circle via Canada, Russia, Norway, Denmark via Greenland and Alaska. Acquiring Greenland would give the US a rather large claim in the Arctic.
Trump has said it is essential to national security.
“National and international security require Greenland,” Trump said in a speech to Congress in March, adding that territory is “very important to military security.”
The United States has had military forces in Greenland since World War II, and before Trump redesignated it in his first administration, it maintains a small missile defense base called Pitafik Space Station, formerly the air force base in Tours. It could become part of the “Golden Dome” missile defense system, modeled after the Israeli iron dome system. In an executive order, Trump gave Defense Secretary Pete Hegses until March 28th to develop a plan for that missile defense shield.
But there are market-based threats that Trump would like to protect as well. Russia and China are already working with Arctic shipping routes, and Russia's broad presence in the region (where the largest region of the Arctic coastline) threatens to remain the dominant economic force of the region.
Greenland could be a rich source of rare earth minerals and energy.
According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic possesses 13% of undiscovered gas resources and 30% of undiscovered natural gas, most of which are offshore. Dominating Greenland gives the United States an expanded claim to these submarine resources.
However, Greenland also boasts its own huge store of rare earth minerals essential for the production of batteries, mobile phones, electric vehicles and other technologies. The Trump administration is looking globally to expand its rare earth mineral stocks.
Rare earth minerals were an important part of the agreement that the US was about to attack Ukraine. Greenland's cobalt, nickel, copper, lithium, zirconium and other mineral shops are proving my challenge, but there is another incentive for the US to try to control its market: China.
Today, China controls the global raw mineral market and is already about to invade Greenland. By acquiring territory, Trump can check out Beijing's efforts to exploit minerals there and expand America's holdings.
Climate change could quickly turn Greenland into a hot product.
Part of the reason why it's been difficult to utilize Greenland's resources up until now is because it's so cold. However, in climate change, melting ice creates new opportunities for resource exploitation. Over the past 30 years, approximately 11,000 square miles of Maryland's ice sheet has melted.
Denmark also recognizes the possibility that Greenland's resources may be essential for the global transition to green energy forms. For local residents, the potential economic boom from mining is considered useful in bidding for independence, the majority hopes.
However, the industry was slow to develop. Greenland is taking steps to limit the potential for environmentally destructive mining practices through laws including the 2021 uranium mining ban, but they could be overturned if the US acquires territory.
