00:00President Donald Trump reasserted in the new year that the United States wants Greenland.
00:05We need Greenland from a national security situation.
00:09Trump said a newly appointed special envoy would lead the charge,
00:13drawing sharp criticism from Denmark and Greenland.
00:16Let's take a look at why Trump is interested in the vast Arctic territory.
00:22Greenland is strategically significant for the US military.
00:26The shortest route from Europe to North America runs through it.
00:29The US has said it wants to expand its existing military presence on the island.
00:34That includes placing radars to watch waters in the region used by Russian Navy vessels and nuclear submarines.
00:41Right now Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place.
00:46Shipping data show most Chinese and Russian activity in the Arctic is in waters near Russia.
00:52But more broadly, the Arctic is becoming more militarized,
00:55with NATO states, China and Russia all expanding activity there.
01:00The island is also rich in minerals, oil and natural gas,
01:03though development has been slow and mining has seen very limited US investment.
01:09Legally, Greenland is a territory of Denmark, which is a NATO member.
01:14In 2009, it was granted broad self-governing autonomy.
01:18That includes the right to declare independence from Denmark through a referendum.
01:23Polls show most of Greenland's 57,000 inhabitants back independence.
01:28But many of them also fear a hasty move for independence could lead them worse off and expose the island to the US.
01:35The US military has a permanent presence in an airbase in northwest Greenland.
01:41In 1951, the US and Denmark made an agreement.
01:44It gave the US the right to move around freely and construct military bases on the island as long as Denmark and Greenland are notified.
01:54Trump offered to buy the island during his first presidential term,
01:57a move Danish Prime Minister Mette Friedrichsen called absurd.
02:01In late 2025, Trump named a special envoy to Greenland,
02:06Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, who publicly backs the idea of the island becoming part of the US.
02:13Friedrichsen has since said Denmark wants to continue being a good ally of the US,
02:18while also saying that Trump's threats should be taken seriously.
02:22In a joint statement pushing back on Trump,
02:25she and Greenland's Prime Minister Jens Friedrich Nielsen said Greenland belongs to Greenlanders,
02:30saying, quote,
02:31you cannot annex another country, not even with an argument about international security.
Comments