Analysts say the plan has been long discussed and should not be seen as a direct response to President Trump’s comments.
They say Denmark has so far been very slow to expand its military presence in Greenland, but if Denmark is unable to protect the waters surrounding its territory from invasion by China and Russia, demands from the United States for tighter control will increase. It is likely to increase.
Army Maj. Steen Kjærgaard of the Danish National Defense Academy suggested that Trump’s intention may have been to pressure Denmark into making such a move.
“This is driven by President Trump’s renewed focus on the need for air and maritime control around Greenland and developments within Greenland, where some have expressed a desire to turn to the United States. “The new international airport in Nuuk has just been completed,” he told the BBC.
Noting that Greenland relies heavily on subsidies from Copenhagen, he said: “I think Mr. Trump is wise…to raise this voice without inheriting a welfare system that is very un-American. “We are giving Denmark priority over its military capabilities in the Arctic,” he added.
President Trump’s initial proposal in 2019 for the United States to acquire Greenland, the world’s largest island, similarly drew heavy criticism from leaders.
At the time, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the idea “ridiculous,” leading President Trump to cancel a state visit to the country.
He is not the first US president to suggest buying Greenland. The idea was first discussed in the 1860s under President Andrew Johnson.
