Trump Eyes Greenland Again... Denmark Increases Defense Spending

Trump Administration Also Expressed Purchase Intent in First Term
Aiming for Location and Natural Resources Needed for Advanced Technology

President-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, has once again expressed his intention to purchase Greenland, a Danish protectorate.

President-elect of the United States Donald Trump. Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News.

On the 23rd (local time), foreign media such as The New York Times (NYT) and The Washington Post (WP) reported that President-elect Trump is pursuing the purchase of Greenland from the perspective of national security and commercial interests. Trump also stated on his social networking service (SNS) Truth Social, "For national security and world freedom, I believe it is absolutely necessary for the United States to have ownership and control of Greenland." Foreign media interpreted this as targeting Greenland’s strategic location and natural resources essential for advanced technology.

President-elect Trump announced the day before that he appointed Ken Howery, former ambassador to Sweden, as ambassador to Denmark, expressing his intention to acquire Greenland again during the second term of the Trump administration, following the first term.

He has consistently expressed his desire to purchase Greenland since his first term in 2019. In particular, it is known that he had concrete negotiation plans, including offering the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, located in the northeastern Caribbean, in exchange for Greenland. However, before any official discussions on purchasing Greenland could take place, both Denmark and Greenland rejected the idea. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen dismissed Trump’s proposal at the time as "absurd." Because of this, then-President Trump showed displeasure and canceled his planned visit to Denmark. Prime Minister Frederiksen remains the head of the Danish government.

On the 24th, the British BBC and others reported that Troels Lund Poulsen, Denmark’s Minister of Defense, announced a package to expand Greenland’s defense spending. Although the exact amount was not disclosed, it was mentioned to be in the "tens of billions of kroner (approximately 1.284 trillion KRW)." BBC reported that local media expect the package size to be around 12 billion to 15 billion kroner (approximately 1.54 trillion to 1.926 trillion KRW).

Greenland is an island with a population of about 57,000 and an area of 2,166,000 km², more than nine times the size of the Korean Peninsula. The island was under Danish rule from the mid-18th century until 1979. Since 2009, Greenland has been granted the right to declare independence, but it still entrusts defense and foreign policy to Denmark and remains a Danish territory. However, Denmark is a member of the EU, but Greenland is not considered EU territory.

Greenland is reported to be rich in natural resources, including oil and rare earth minerals essential for manufacturing semiconductors and electric vehicles, such as neodymium and dysprosium. Experts say that if the U.S. incorporates Greenland, it could be a decisive opportunity to break free from dependence on Chinese rare earths.

Additionally, considering Greenland’s geopolitical location, it is regarded as a strategic stronghold. The U.S. military has its northernmost base, Pituffik Base (formerly Thule Air Base), in Greenland. During Trump’s first term, there was analysis that this base would be used as a foothold to dominate the Arctic. This Air Force base under the U.S. Space Command is important for operating the ballistic missile early warning system. The shortest range from Europe to North America passes through Greenland. For these reasons, it is widely expected that President-elect Trump’s interest in Greenland will not easily fade.

Although Denmark and Greenland have no intention to sell, WP estimated the price of Greenland in 2019 at $1.7 trillion (2,482 trillion KRW).