President-elect Donald Trump has revived a controversial claim from 2019: “For the purposes of national security and freedom around the world, the United States of America considers the ownership and control of Greenland to be an absolute necessity.” Alongside this declaration, Trump announced the appointment of Ken Howery, co-founder of PayPal and the venture capital firm Founders Fund, as the new US ambassador to Denmark. This proposal draws parallels to a historical precedent in international policy: in 1917, Copenhagen sold the Virgin Islands to Washington for $25 million. Greenland, much like the Faroe Islands, is part of the Kingdom of Denmark but has been self-governing and autonomous since 1978. While it remains under Danish sovereignty, it is not a member of the European Union. Trump’s bid puts him at odds not only with Denmark, a model NATO member, but also with the EU. The European Union is keen to secure influence over Greenland, which boasts vast natural resources, including gold, silver, copper, uranium, rare earths, and potentially oil.
This interest also counters growing Chinese ambitions in the region. Greenland’s Prime Minister Egede firmly dismissed the idea: “We are not for sale and never will be.” In recent years, Greenland has been at the center of geopolitical tensions. Russia unsuccessfully attempted to extend its territory into Greenland’s Exclusive Economic Zone, while local elections in 2021 rejected a mining project favoring an Australian company with significant Chinese investment. In November 2023, Greenland took a significant step in solidifying ties with the EU: Greenland’s Minister of Natural Resources, Naaja Nathanielsen, signed an agreement with the European Commissioner for Inter-Institutional Relations and Strategic Perspectives, Maroš Šefčovič. On 15 March 2024, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, visited Nuuk to sign two €94 million cooperation agreements with Prime Minister Egede. The agreements aim to foster economic growth and security. “New jobs in Greenland, greater security of supply for Europe; we can both benefit from closer cooperation in these areas” read the official press release of the European Commission. The visit also marked the inauguration of the EU’s first office in Nuuk, signaling a deeper partnership between Greenland and the European Union.
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