US President Donald Trump recently doubled down on Greenland, “I think we’re going to have it.”[1] In December 2024, Trump publicly justified the ownership of Greenland. He said, “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.”[2] Trump’s announcement to purchase Greenland to safeguard national security has drawn widespread criticism from allies and adversaries alike. The Danish Prime Minister’s Office issued a firm rebuttal and said that Greenland is “…not being for sale, but open for cooperation.”[3]
However, this is not the first time Trump has floated the idea of buying the world’s largest island. Back in 2019, Trump cancelled a visit to Denmark after Copenhagen rebuffed his request to purchase the island. In fact, the US tried to buy the island in 1946 for $100 million and today some estimates suggest that Greenland may be worth $1.1 trillion—money that America does not have.[4] So why does Trump want to buy Greenland? An island located between the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans and covered 80% by an ice sheet?
The World’s Least Densely Populated Island
The first cartographic depictions of Greenland’s coasts emerged in the late 15th century when the Portuguese had been attempting to find the northern route to Asia. In the 17th century, Dano-Norwegian explorers reached Greenland and found their earlier settlements extinct and re-established a permanent Scandinavian presence on the island. When Denmark and Norway separated in 1814, Greenland was transferred from the Norwegian to the Danish crown. In 1953 the Constitution of Denmark ended Greenland’s status as a colony, integrating it fully into the Danish state. In the 1979 Greenlandic home rule referendum, Denmark granted home rule to Greenland. In the 2008 Greenlandic self-government referendum, Greenlanders voted for the Self-Government Act, which transferred more power from the Danish government to the local Naalakkersuisut (Greenlandic government). Under this structure, Greenland gradually assumed responsibility for a number of governmental services.
Although today, Greenland is largely autonomous, it is still influenced by decisions made in Copenhagen. Over the past decades, Greenland has gained greater independence from Denmark, and since 2009 the government in Nuuk has controlled several policy areas, including the island’s natural resources. However, Copenhagen is still responsible for the territory’s monetary, foreign and defense policies, and Denmark’s strong anti-nuclear policy has prevented the extraction of Greenland’s uranium.
Today, Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark and its 56,000 population are full citizens of the European country. Greenland is an overseas territory of the European Union and is considered the northernmost point in the world. Although Greenland is part of the continental shelf of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe. So why is the US president so interested in this island, which is the size of Saudi Arabia and where temperatures barely reach 6 degrees in the summer?
Maritime Choke-Point
Greenland occupies a pivotal location in the Arctic. With its vast coastlines and proximity to both the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean, the island serves as an essential outpost for early-warning systems and control over critical maritime gaps such as the GIUK gap. 
This is an area in the northern Atlantic Ocean that forms a naval choke point. Its name is an acronym for three countries namely: Greenland, Iceland, and the United Kingdom. The opening represents two stretches of open ocean among these three landmasses. It separates the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea from the open Atlantic Ocean. The term is typically used in relation to strategic military planning and has featured prominently amongst America’s military establishment. US military planners value Greenland to project power and safeguard North American defense interests against potential adversaries like Russia, China and even European powers. The control of the gap forms sort of an island chain—very similar to the first and second island chain to prevent China having access to the Pacific Ocean—which if controlled becomes a naval choke point and can prevent great powers like China and Russia reaching American shores.
Greenland’s Resources
Greenland, the world’s largest island, is a treasure trove of natural resources, boasting a diverse array of minerals and energy potential. Its subsoil harbors valuable deposits of rare earth elements (REE), crucial for high-tech industries, alongside precious metals like gold and silver. Access to REE lessons America’s reliance on China. Furthermore, base metals such as copper, lead, zinc, and nickel are also present, as well as specialty metals including tantalum, niobium, and uranium. The island’s resource wealth extends to industrial minerals, gemstones (including diamonds), iron ore, coal, and graphite, making it a potential powerhouse in the global minerals market. Additionally, tech moguls like Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos want to benefit from Greenland. They are also investors in a start-up aiming to mine western Greenland for materials crucial to the artificial intelligence boom. The company, KoBold Metals, uses artificial intelligence to locate and extract rare earth minerals. Their proprietary algorithm parses government-funded geological surveys and other data to locate significant deposits. The program pinpointed southwest Greenland’s rugged coastline, where the company now has a 51% stake in the Disko-Nuussuaq project, searching for minerals like copper.[6] In Greenland, KoBold Metals’ exploration licenses focus on searching for nickel, copper, cobalt, and platinum-group minerals — materials important for green energy, but also for data centers’ rapid growth.
The energy sector in Greenland is equally promising, with significant oil and natural gas reserves estimated to lie beneath its coastal waters. The US Geological Survey has suggested that waters off northeastern Greenland could contain up to 110 billion barrels of oil.[7] Additionally, Greenland possesses substantial hydropower potential, already deriving 70% of its energy from renewable sources, primarily hydropower. This abundance of energy resources positions Greenland as a potential key player in the global energy landscape.
Despite significant resource potential, Greenland faces challenges in exploitation. Limited infrastructure, ongoing environmental concerns, and the need for sustainable development practices complicate large-scale resource extraction. Nevertheless, the island’s untapped natural resources continue to attract global interest and a new scramble for Greenland.
Space
Greenland’s geographic position in the high Arctic makes it an ideal location for hosting space-related assets. The existing Pituffik Space Base (formerly Thule Air Base) is already a critical node in the U.S. missile early-warning system and provides a vantage point for tracking satellites and other objects in polar orbits.[8] Its northern latitude allows for optimal coverage of polar trajectories and can enhance the overall resilience and redundancy of US space surveillance networks. With additional investments or an expanded military footprint in Greenland, the US could modernise its space tracking and communication systems, ensuring uninterrupted command and control over satellites—vital for both defence and civilian applications.
Testing Ground for Tech Infrastructure
The harsh Arctic environment, while challenging in many respects, also offers unique benefits for certain technological operations. The naturally low ambient temperatures can be harnessed to reduce the energy costs of cooling data centers and high-performance computing facilities, which are crucial for processing vast amounts of data from space and cyber monitoring systems. Establishing or upgrading technological infrastructure in Greenland could provide the US with an energy-efficient base for research, development, and real-time data analysis related to space surveillance, weather prediction, and even advanced cyber operations. In a recent edition of Techcrunch, it was argued that the harsh cold environment is ideal to build “…overheating AI data centers”. [9]
Countering China’s Polar Silk Road (PSR)
The PSR is a strategic initiative launched by China as part of its broader Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), aimed at expanding trade routes and economic influence in the Arctic. Officially introduced in China’s 2018 Arctic Policy White Paper, the PSR envisions the development of Arctic shipping lanes, infrastructure investments, and resource extraction projects to enhance Beijing’s economic and strategic presence in the region.
China views the Arctic as an essential component of its long-term strategy for global trade and energy security. The Polar Silk route effectively by-passes US choke points from the Mediterranean Sea to the East China Sea. As Arctic ice continues to melt, new shipping routes are opening, significantly shortening the time and cost of transporting goods between Asia, Europe, and North America. The key routes of the PSR include:
- The Northern Sea Route (NSR) – Along Russia’s northern coastline, which can reduce transit time between China and Europe by up to 40% compared to the Suez Canal.
- The Transpolar Route – A central Arctic route that will become navigable as more ice melts, offering a direct passage between the Atlantic and Pacific.
- The Northwest Passage (NWP) – Running through Canadian waters, which, if fully opened, would offer another alternative to traditional trade routes.
China has declared itself a “near-Arctic state” despite having no Arctic territory and has been increasing investments in Arctic infrastructure, shipping, and natural resource extraction. This has raised concerns in Washington and other Western capitals over China’s ambitions in the Arctic.
With climate change melting the Arctic Ocean, new trade routes like the Polar Silk Route have opened, which present a huge security challenge to Washington, and Greenland is increasingly becoming a battleground for influence between the US, China, and other major powers. Ensuring that Greenland remains within the Western security framework is a top priority for US policymakers as they seek to counter China’s growing ambitions in the Arctic and beyond. The thinning of the ice due to warmer weather makes it possible for sea freight to travel in certain months, and by 2030 it is expected that freight will flow freely.[10]
Greenland is a crucial asset for the US in countering China’s Polar Silk Road, which seeks to dominate Arctic trade routes, resource extraction and by-pass the traditional trade routes controlled by the US Its strategic location allows the US to control key Arctic shipping lanes, preventing China from establishing a foothold in the region. Greenland’s vast rare earth mineral deposits are essential for reducing US dependence on China’s critical material supply chains. Additionally, maintaining U.S. military presence at Pituffik Space Base strengthens Arctic security and missile defence, countering potential Chinese and Russian expansion. By securing Greenland within the Western security framework, the US ensures that NATO retains dominance in the Arctic, blocking Beijing’s economic and geopolitical ambitions.
[1] Donald Trump says he believes the US will ‘get Greenland’ – BBC News
[2] Trump calls to buy Greenland after eyeing Canada and the Panama Canal | AP News
[3] ibid
[4] Trump Wants to Buy Greenland, But How Much Would It Actually Cost? – The New York Times
[5] Pincus, R., (27 May 2020), ‘Towards a New Arctic,’ The RUSI Journal. 165 (3): 50–58.
[6] Big Tech Stands to Profit From a US Takeover of Greenland
[7] Greenland Makes Oil Companies Melt
[8] Greenland election: what does it mean for Trump? | Reuters
[9] Ken Howery: The tech mogul at the center of Trump’s Greenland ambition | TechCrunch
[10] The Polar Silk Road
