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Donald Trump has reiterated his ambition to buy Greenland, putting pressure on the Danish government as the US president-elect’s son prepares to visit the Arctic island.
Trump promised to “make Greenland great again” after news of his son Donald Jr’s “private visit” to the world’s largest island emerged late on Monday.
“Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside World,” the president-elect wrote on Truth Social.
Greenland, an autonomous part of the kingdom of Denmark, has become the centre of geopolitical intrigue after Trump, first in 2019 and then again now, has proposed taking control of the vast island, home to just 56,000 people but central to the Arctic region.
His move places Denmark, which retains full control over foreign affairs and defence in Greenland, as well as providing it with a large annual economic grant, in a bind as the centrist government in Copenhagen ponders how to respond to the overtures from its own biggest security guarantor, the US.
Mette Frederiksen, Denmark’s prime minister, provoked Trump’s scorn in 2019 when she called it “an absurd discussion” and insisted Greenland was not for sale. Trump immediately cancelled an impending state visit to Denmark.
Many commentators believe Denmark will have to be more subtle in its response this time, even if Trump Jr’s visit appears provocative.
Muté Egede, Greenland’s prime minister, has said that “we are not for sale and never will be for sale”.
But ahead of elections in Greenland in April, Egede has strongly pushed for independence from Denmark, something only possible with help from outside investors interested in the island’s natural resources, including large deposits of rare earths as well as its potential for tourism.
Trump said early on Tuesday: “My son, Don Jr, and various representatives, will be travelling there to visit some of the most magnificent areas and sights.” Trump Jr said in a podcast that he was not planning to buy Greenland and was merely there as a tourist and not intending to meet any government representatives.
Aaja Chemnitz, a Greenlandic member of Denmark’s parliament, cautioned her fellow islanders from letting Trump dominate the territory’s upcoming elections.
Opinion polls have suggested strong support in Greenland for independence in the coming decades but not immediately, as the island considers how to wean itself economically off the DKr3.9bn ($550mn) economic grant it receives annually from Copenhagen.
Denmark’s new king, Frederik X, stepped into the geopolitical intrigue during the Christmas period by changing the royal coat of arms to feature Greenland and the Faroe Islands, another autonomous territory, more prominently.
Trump’s renewed play for Greenland received support from Elon Musk, his close ally and head of X and Tesla. “The people of Greenland should decide their future and I think they want to be part of America!” he wrote on X.
