Greenland’s owner, Denmark, says the Arctic island is not for sale

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President-elect Donald Trump is repeating a call he made during his first term — for the U.S. to buy Greenland.

He has even invited his social media followers to express their support for the idea via a poll posted to his account on Wednesday. Here’s everything you need to know about who owns Greenland, Trump’s pitch and how Canada fits into the equation.

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How long has Greenland been on Trump’s radar?

During his first term, in 2019, Trump confirmed reports that he had been urging aides to find out how the U.S. could buy the island, describing the potential purchase as a “large real estate deal.” When that didn’t work out in his favour, he cancelled a planned 2019 visit to Denmark.

Meanwhile, there are financially attractive reasons to target Greenland. As well as oil and gas, Greenland’s supply of multiple in-demand raw materials for green technology is attracting worldwide interest — including from China. A recent report from the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee said China has invested the equivalent of nearly 12 per cent of Greenland’s GDP (it was a total of US3.26 billion in 2021). A Chinese company, Shenghe Resources, owns 12.5 per cent of a major uranium project in Greenland that is valued at $1.4 billion. However, if the U.S. were to acquire Greenland, it could keep China out.

Strategically positioned, Greenland is also viewed as important for U.S. defence. Russia is a close high Arctic neighbour to the island. And Russia has agreed to collaborate with China in developing an Arctic shipping route that Chinese President Xi Jinping has dubbed an “Ice Silk Road.”

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Who owns Greenland?

Greenland is a Danish territory. Danes have been involved in the affairs of the island since 1721, when a combination of Danes and Norwegians settled there. During the Second World War, Denmark was occupied by Germany, while Greenland was occupied by the U.S., which has had a military base there ever since.

Greenland was returned to Denmark at the end of the war. It became an official part of the kingdom of Denmark in 1953, though home rule was introduced for the 56,000 inhabitants in 1979, which included the establishment of its own parliament.

So, while Denmark relies heavily on budget transfers from Copenhagen, which also manages its diplomatic relations and security, there have been calls from Greenlanders for a break from Denmark. The island’s current government, led by Prime Minister Mute Egede, aims for eventual independence.

However, that movement isn’t providing an opening to Trump. In December 2024, Egede said Greenland is not for sale. “Let me repeat it — Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders. Our future and fight for independence is our business. Danes, Americans and everyone else can have opinions, but we should not be caught up in the hysteria and pointing fingers at others. Because our future is ours and must be shaped by us.”

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Greenland’s finance minister, Erik Jensen, recently repeated that Greenland is not for sale. “Our wish is to become independent one day. But our ambition is not to go from being governed by one country to another.”

While many Greenlanders dream of independence from Denmark, the Danish king remains popular on the island, having spent extended periods there. Last month, the royal court modified its coat of arms, enlarging a polar bear that symbolizes Greenland.

And according to a 2009 agreement with Denmark, Greenland must hold a successful referendum before declaring independence.

How does Denmark feel about Trump’s desire to buy Greenland?

On Tuesday, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also repeated a position taken again and again by Denmark: Greenland is not for sale.

In an interview on Danish television, Frederiksen said it “has been very, very clear … there is a lot of support among the people of Greenland that Greenland is not for sale and will not be in the future either.”

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How serious is Trump about Greenland?

Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. travelled to Greenland this month, however he has no plans to meet with Greenland officials.

Still, after Trump Jr. arrived in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital city, his father promoted the visit on Truth Social: “Don Jr. and my Reps landing in Greenland. The reception has been great. They, and the Free World, need safety, security, strength, and PEACE! This is a deal that must happen. MAGA. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote on Tuesday.

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Is this the first time the U.S. tried to buy Greenland?

The U.S. has made previous offers. In 1910, U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Maurice Francis Egan proposed a trade of two Philippine islands and the Danish West Indies for Greenland. At the time, the Philippines were under U.S. control. The U.S. secured the purchase of the Caribbean islands in 1917. They are now known as the U.S. Virgin Islands. But the Danish answer regarding Greenland was the same then as it is today: Not for sale.

In 1946, President Harry Truman made another offer — $100 million in gold bullion. In the wake of the close of the Second World War, Truman (like Trump) cited security concerns. But again the answer was: No.

Greenland has hosted an important U.S. military base since the war. It is now the site of an early warning ballistic missile system. A large military operation, the Pituffik Space Base, is run by the U.S. Space Command.

What is Canada’s relationship with Greenland’s owner?

As a Danish territory, Greenland benefits from Denmark’s positive diplomatic relations with Canada. The land of the maple leaf is closer to Greenland than Denmark is — just 26 kilometres away — and the two share a 3,000-kilometre maritime border.

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According to the Canadian department of Global Affairs: “Denmark is a close, like-minded partner for Canada across a range of priority issues, including security and defence, trade and investment, climate change, cooperation in the Arctic, development and human rights.”

Their close multinational relationship includes membership in NATO and the Arctic Council, the latter being “the pre-eminent intergovernmental forum for circumpolar co-operation.”

Did Canada and Denmark fight over an island?

Relations between the two nations were not always completely amicable. A dispute over a small island that lays between Canada and Greenland goes back to the 1800s.

Hans Island lies between Greenland and Canada’s Ellesmere Island. It’s small, only 3.4 square kilometres, and is barren. It was used by Inuit peoples during the 19th century. The Hudson’s Bay Company laid claim to it in 1880. However, the Danes claimed it for their Indigenous peoples, who used it as a base for fishing. Archaeologists have traced the Saqqaq peoples back 5,000 years. Archaeology surveys of the island in the 1950s found several of their sites.

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British and American explorers were in the area in the mid to late 1800s. In 1871, American explorer Charles Francis Hall set sail for North Pole, on the ill-fated Polaris. A Greenlander, Hans Hendrik, was his hunter and guide. During the voyage, they spotted the tiny island and Hall named it after his guide. The name first appeared on a map published in 1874.

In 1933, the International Court of Justice declared Greenland to be part of the Kingdom of Denmark, however, the status of Hans Island was not specifically addressed. This led to what became known as the “Whiskey War.”

What was the Canadian-Danish ‘Whiskey War’?

In 1973, the two countries entered discussions to establish the boundary between them. They signed a UN agreement that drew a line down the middle of Hans Island.

However, the property dispute continued despite it. A pseudo-war known as the “Whiskey War” began in 1984 when Canadian soldiers landed on the island, planted a Canadian flag and left a bottle of Canadian (rye) whiskey beside it.

In response, Denmark’s minister responsible for Greenland affairs made a visit, too, planting the Danish flag and leaving a bottle of schnapps with a note: “Welcome to the Danish Island.”

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These antics continued for decades until 2022, when the countries decided to call an informal truce and agreed to split the island in half. The by-product of this amicable agreement is that the two countries now share a land border. Whether that will be another reason for Trump to target Canada remains to be seen. Trump’s expansionist claims have included a refusal to rule out taking the Panama Canal by military force, and a desire to absorb Canada as the 51st U.S. state using economic force.

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