A senior White House official has sent shockwaves through the NATO alliance by bluntly stating that Greenland should become part of the United States and dismissing the prospect of any military challenge to Washington's ambitions for the Arctic territory.
A Combative Stance on CNN
In a remarkable televised appearance on CNN's The Lead with Jake Tapper on Monday night, Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff and homeland security adviser, repeatedly brushed aside questions about whether the US would consider using military force to seize Greenland, which is an autonomous territory of Denmark.
"Nobody's gonna fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland," Miller asserted, avoiding direct answers when pressed to explicitly rule out military intervention. When questioned on the basis of Denmark's sovereignty, he retorted, "What is the basis of their territorial claim? What is their basis of having Greenland as a colony of Denmark?"
Miller framed the potential acquisition as a matter of national and alliance security, stating, "The United States is the power of NATO. For the United States to secure the Arctic region, to protect and defend NATO and NATO interests, obviously, Greenland should be part of the United States."
Swift and Blunt Backlash from Denmark
The comments, which follow President Donald Trump's own refusal to rule out taking Greenland by force, triggered an immediate and unusually stark response from Copenhagen. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen used a nationally televised address to firmly reject the idea.
"I have already made it very clear where the Kingdom of Denmark stands and that Greenland has repeatedly said that it does not want to be part of the United States," Frederiksen stated. She issued a grave warning about the potential consequences, indicating that a US attack on a NATO ally would bring the alliance to a halt, dismantling the post-war security order.
In her New Year's address, reported by Berlingske, she condemned the escalating rhetoric, saying, "Wanting to take over another country, other people, as if it were something you could buy and own - it doesn't belong anywhere." She also highlighted that Denmark is rapidly boosting its military spending and Arctic defences in response.
Public Opinion and the Spark of Controversy
The diplomatic firestorm was ignited over the weekend when Katie Miller, Stephen Miller's wife and a former Trump official, posted an image on social media platform X of Greenland covered by an American flag with the caption "SOON." This came just hours after a US operation in Venezuela that captured that country's president, amplifying fears about Washington's willingness to use force to change borders.
Despite the Trump administration's insistence that Greenland is vital to US security, local sentiment is overwhelmingly against the idea. A January 2025 survey by Verian found that 85% of Greenland's approximately 57,000 residents oppose joining the United States, with only 6% in favour.
While Greenland has held the right to declare independence from Denmark since 2009, it remains within the kingdom largely due to its reliance on Danish financial support and public services. The recent statements from Washington have now placed the territory's geopolitical future at the centre of a major transatlantic rift.
