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The White House announced Tuesday that President Donald Trump is exploring options to acquire Greenland, including the potential deployment of the U.S. military, reigniting his interest in controlling the strategically significant island despite objections from Europe.
According to a White House statement, Trump considers acquiring Greenland a vital national security goal to “deter adversaries in the Arctic region.” The statement added that the president and his team are evaluating various methods to achieve this foreign policy objective, emphasizing that utilizing the military remains an available option for the commander-in-chief.
Greenland’s government has consistently stated it does not wish to join the United States. Leaders from major European nations and Canada stood in solidarity on Tuesday, asserting that the territory belongs to its people.
A military intervention to seize Greenland from longstanding ally Denmark would have significant repercussions within NATO and could deepen tensions between Trump and European leaders. Nevertheless, these objections have not dissuaded Trump from considering turning Greenland into a U.S. hub amid rising interest from Russia and China in the Arctic.
Trump’s renewed focus on Greenland, initially expressed in 2019 during his first term, has gained momentum recently, notably following the U.S. arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Confident after Maduro’s capture last weekend, Trump declared that “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again” and has pressured Colombia and Cuba to align with U.S. interests.
After months of putting the idea aside, Trump has begun discussing Greenland once more. An anonymous senior U.S. official told reporters that Trump and his advisors are weighing several ways to acquire the island, from an outright purchase to establishing a Compact of Free Association (COFA), which would avoid fully annexing Greenland, home to about 57,000 residents. The official did not specify a potential price for the purchase.
“Diplomacy and dealmaking are always the president’s preferred routes,” the official said. “If a fair deal can be negotiated to acquire Greenland, that would be his first choice.”
During a classified briefing late Monday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers that recent threats aimed at Greenland didn’t indicate an imminent invasion, and that the goal remains to purchase the island from Denmark. Two sources confirmed the details to the Wall Street Journal.
Some congressional members, including fellow Republicans, criticized the administration’s comments, reaffirming Denmark’s loyalty as a NATO ally. Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, co-chairs of the Senate NATO Observer Group, stated: “When Denmark and Greenland make it clear that Greenland is not for sale, the United States must respect Denmark’s sovereignty and treaty commitments.”
Officials stress that Greenland’s mineral deposits—valuable for high-tech and military applications—are critical to U.S. interests. However, these resources remain largely untapped due to labor shortages, limited infrastructure, and other obstacles. An official remarked that the push to acquire Greenland remains a priority during Trump’s remaining three years in office.
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