US President Donald Trump has reiterated his interest in acquiring Greenland, citing the island's strategic importance for Arctic security. Speaking at a NATO summit, Trump argued that controlling Greenland is essential for protecting the United States and the world from threats posed by Russia and China.
Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark, lies mostly above the Arctic Circle and sits off the northeastern coast of Canada. Its location has made it crucial to North American defence since World War II, when the US occupied it to prevent Nazi Germany from gaining a foothold and to protect Atlantic shipping lanes. Today, the US military operates the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, which supports missile warning and space surveillance operations.
Trump's repeated demands for the island have strained relations with NATO allies, particularly Denmark, which has rejected his overtures. Greenland's own government has also opposed US designs, insisting that its people will decide their own future. The island is home to around 56,000 mostly Inuit people.
The renewed focus on Greenland comes amid rising international tensions in the Arctic, driven by climate change, which is thinning sea ice and opening new shipping routes, and competition over mineral resources. China has declared itself a 'near-Arctic state' and announced plans for a 'Polar Silk Road', while Russia has been rebuilding Soviet-era military infrastructure and bolstering its presence in the region. European leaders have grown increasingly concerned since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Trump has claimed that the US needs Greenland to deter threats from Russia and China, though he has made unsubstantiated assertions about foreign military forces near the island. He initially refused to rule out using military force to secure the territory but later said he had taken that option off the table.
