Policy Backgrounders

Greenland

January 10, 2025

Recently, the incoming Administration has floated an idea first discussed in the last Trump Administration: that the US should purchase Greenland. But Denmark says Greenland is not for sale, Greenlanders want independence and have been reluctant to permit outsiders to exploit its vast natural resources, and the President-elect’s refusal to rule out the use of force against a NATO Ally shocked observers on both sides of the Atlantic.

Key Insights

• Greenland, the world’s largest island, is a self-governing territory of Denmark with its own Parliament; Denmark retains authority for foreign and defense policy.
• Greenland is a part of NATO but not of the European Union, having withdrawn from it in 1985. Greenland has vast and largely undeveloped mineral resources, but Greenlanders have often been wary of permitting outside development of them.
• Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reiterated that Greenland is “not for sale.”
• Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egede echoed the statement and called for formal independence from Denmark, but the Greenland government also stated that it recognizes Greenland’s “decisive and important role for the US’ national security interests.”
• The issue of Greenland’s defense is increasingly important not only because of its strategic position and resource potential but also because decline in Arctic Sea ice is making polar sea trade routes more usable for trade, reducing shipping time between Asia and Europe.