The prime minister of Greenland said simply that ‘we are not for sale’ after Donald Trump again suggested he wanted the United States to take control of the island.
Trump, 78, made the stark declaration Sunday night as he announced his pick for ambassador to Denmark, PayPal co-founder Ken Howery, who also served as the US ambassador to Sweden from 2019 to 2021.
‘For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,’ he wrote on Truth Social.
The island’s Prime Minister Mute Egede quickly sought to quash any chance of a deal.
‘Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,’ he said in a statement.
The world’s largest island, Greenland is an autonomous Danish territory with its own parliament, about 55,000 inhabitants, and a small pro-independence movement.
It relies on Denmark to fund more than half of its public budget.
Trump on Sunday posted that ‘for purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.’
Donald Trump again suggested he wanted the United States to take control of Greenland
The island’s Prime Minister Mute Egede quickly sought to quash any chance of a deal
He previously expressed interest in buying Greenland during his first presidential term.
Trump was publicly rebuffed by Danish authorities – who reiterated the island was ‘open for business, not for sale’ – before any conversations could take place.
His renewed interest in purchasing Greenland comes amid a series of a comments about territorial expansion, including invading Mexico and turning Canada into a US state. He also threatened to reassert American control over the Panama Canal.
Although he has publicly mused about expanding US territory, Trump has not shared a specific plan to do so or revealed how much America would pay for such acquisitions.
The Charters Cities Institute, a DC based nonprofit which has analyzed a potential Greenland purchase, claims a purchase is unlikely unless the US were to make a bid that was enticing to all Greenlanders – such as offering $500billion split equally amongst all citizens.
As president, he canceled a state trip to Denmark in 2019 after the country said Greenland was not for sale.
The US offered Denmark $100million in gold for Greenland in 1946, which adjusted for inflation was approximately $1.4billion in 2019.
However, the valuation doesn’t include the natural resources or diplomatic importance that Greenland, the world’s largest island, currently holds, Times Now News reports.
Trump, 78, made the stark declaration Sunday night as he announced his pick for ambassador to Denmark, PayPal co-founder Ken Howery, who also served as the US ambassador to Sweden from 2019 to 2021
Greenland, which is roughly 836,000 square miles, is a mineral-rich area that is almost entirely covered in ice sheets and holds strategic value for shipping routes, military interests and Arctic sovereignty.
While Trump is interested in the benefits that American-control over Greenland would provide, it is unclear how the Greenlandic public would feel about a US purchase.
Greenlanders have been largely supportive of independence from Denmark, according to the Charters Cities Institute, which cited a poll from 2019 revealing that two-thirds of citizens ‘supported full independence’.
A poll conducted two years later also suggested that 69 per cent of Greenlanders supported closer cooperation with the US. That same poll also revealed that 68 per cent of people were in support of greater cooperation with Denmark.
Charters Cities Institute states that given the public’s support for independence, it is unlikely that Greenlanders would support America purchasing the island.
However, the organization suggested that a significant payout that put money in the pockets of each citizen ‘might change some minds’.
Analysts, proposing a hypothetical offer, suggested a $500billion purchase split evenly amongst all Greenlanders – which would provide each citizen with a roughly $8.7million check – might be enough to sweeten the deal.
Under President Joe Biden, the United States said it did not want a purchase but instead sought to strengthen ties.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the Black Ridge Viewing site in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland, May 20, 2021. Blinken ruled out the possibility of the US buying Greenland after Trump suggested a move to purchase the territory in 2019
Asked in 2021 whether the U.S. had definitively ruled out any plans to buy Greenland, president Biden’s Secretary of State Antony Blinken replied with a smile: ‘I can confirm that’s correct.’
The U.S. wants to strengthen its relationship with Greenland, especially commercially, Blinken said during a visit to the island.
He visited the Danish autonomous territory as he ended a four-day trip that included a meeting of the foreign ministers of countries bordering the Artic in Reykjavik.
‘I am in Greenland because the United States deeply values our partnership and wants to make it even stronger,’ Blinken told reporters on his final stop of the Arctic tour.
In 2020, the U.S. reopened a consulate in Greenland’s capital Nuuk, and pledged $12 million in aid for civilian projects.
While he spoke of potential additional funding, Blinken was vague about new US projects, even though the new Greenlandic local government had floated the idea of a free trade agreement earlier in the week.
‘We would like to find ways to strengthen even more the commercial relationship,’ Blinken said.
Greenlandic new young Prime Minister Mute Egede, who came to power in April, said he was ‘convinced that this decade will be the beginning of a new era in the relationship between our countries’.
The left-wing government, which won snap parliamentary elections last month, is allied with a small pro-independence party, Naleraq, which has shown itself to be in favour of mending ties with the US.
