Who owns Greenland? What to know as Trump floats idea to buy Arctic island
President-elect Donald Trump's calls for a purchase of Greenland have increased with less than two weeks until his inauguration. Amid those desires, his son, Donald Trump Jr. is in the middle of a visit to the Arctic island.
Trump Jr. arrived in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital city, for a private visit on Tuesday as his father has continued to reiterate his interest in the resource-rich Arctic island.
The president-elect's calls to take control of Greenland come as Trump has signaled interest in taking control of the Panama Canal and has repeatedly called Canada “the 51st State.”
“Don Jr. and my Reps landing in Greenland. The reception has been great. They, and the Free World, need safety, security, strength, and PEACE! This is a deal that must happen. MAGA. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!,” Trump said in a social media post on Tuesday.
Here's what you need to know.
Who owns Greenland?
Greenland, a territory of Denmark, has seen an increasingly popular independence movement, according to Reuters. On Jan. 3, Greenland's Prime Minister Mute Egede expressed his desire to pursue independence from Denmark.
But as the island continues to be a territory of Denmark, a theoretical purchase by the Trump administration would have to be approved by the Scandinavian nation. On Tuesday, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen made it abundantly clear that Greenland is not for sale.
In an interview on Danish television, Frederiksen said that there “has been very, very clear … that there is a lot of support among the people of Greenland that Greenland is not for sale and will not be in the future either.”
Trump not the first president interested in buying Greenland
Trump is not the first president interested in purchasing the Arctic island. The first recorded instance of an American leader wanting to buy the island was in 1867, when President Andrew Johnson bought Alaska.
Following the purchase of Alaska from the Russian Empire, Johnson’s administration considered buying both Greenland and Iceland for $5.5 million in gold, according to the Journal of American History.
More than half a century later in 1910, U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Maurice Francis Egan discussed a trade of two islands of the Philippines for Greenland. At the time, the Philippines were under U.S. control.
In 1946, President Harry Truman tried to buy the island from Denmark for $100 million in gold bullion, citing the island was a “military necessity,” according to NPR.
Trump looking at more than Greenland
Trump has made recent headlines as he has declined to rule out using the U.S. military to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal.
"No, I can't assure you of either of those two. But I can say this: We need them for economic security. The Panama Canal was built for our military,” Trump said during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.
Apart from the aforementioned desire to acquire Greenland, Trump has also openly discussed his desire to acquire the Panama Canal, which has been operated by Panama since 1999 after a deal orchestrated by the late President Jimmy Carter more than two decades earlier.
Canada has also entered the President-elect’s sights, as Trump has floated the idea of the country becoming the 51st U.S. state.
“Many people in Canada LOVE being the 51st State. The United States can no longer suffer the massive Trade Deficits and Subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat. Justin Trudeau knew this, and resigned. If Canada merged with the U.S., there would be no Tariffs, taxes would go way down, and they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of the Russian and Chinese Ships that are constantly surrounding them. Together, what a great Nation it would be!!!,” Trump said in a post on social media.
(This article has been updated to correct a misspelling.)
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who owns Greenland? Trump floats idea to purchase Arctic island