President Donald Trump has been saying about greenland independence, for months now that he wants to purchase Greenland. Is this realistic?
Greenland Independence
Can Donald Trump buy Greenland? well, not really. There is no clear legal path to doing so in today’s world. The people of Greenland have a lot of power over their own decisions. The days when you could simply buy a large territory directly from a European power.
What the United States did by buying Alaska from Russia in the mid-19th century is not consistent with today’s international legal norms and standards.
What’s In It for the US?
Greenland Independence, Well, it’s not too far from the US, and it’s Well-placed located in the Arctic. The Arctic ice is melting, and Russia has become more active in that region. China, although not an Arctic nation, has also become more active in the Arctic. The United States has a military and strategic interest in having a greater presence in that part of the Arctic.
There is already a significant US air base in the north of the island. In the south of the island, there are deposits of rare earth minerals. As the world seems to be moving away from globalization to a degree, and strategic economic blocs are forming, a source of rare earth minerals that is not in China but in the United States is potentially very valuable.
At least these are the most obvious geostrategic arguments for seeking such an arrangement with Greenland. It’s not entirely clear why President Trump is personally so focused on this.
What’s In It for Greenland?
So what would be in it for Greenland? The United States is an economic and military power. The US is already guaranteeing Greenland’s security. A closer military relationship would strengthen that guarantee and trade ties with the world’s largest, most dynamic economy.
Another benefit of some kind of deal would be that Greenlandic people would have the right to live or work in the US.
How Is Greenland Reacting?
But it’s not clear that this is something that Greenlandic people are particularly interested in at the moment. I was there in December, and there was limited interest in pursuing union with the United States. There was more interest in pursuing greater economic cooperation with the US. There was also a fair amount of wariness among government officials and ordinary people on the streets and in the bars of the capital city of Nuuk. In a recent survey, a majority of Greenlanders said they would like to have closer ties with the US, but even more Greenlanders said they would like to have closer ties with all kinds of other countries, including Iceland and Canada.
What Could Trump Actually Do?
So what could Trump do? One of the most plausible ideas is a treaty of free association. This is an arrangement that the US has with some island nations in the Pacific.
It’s really less about forming a union with Greenland or making it the 51st state, as some people like to suggest, but it does involve some special privileges for both the US and the other nation involved.
For something like a free association agreement to work, a lot of other steps would have to happen. At the moment, Greenland is an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. Their foreign policy is determined by Denmark.
A referendum in Greenland would be needed to approve independence. There’s not a whole lot of agreement about how this process would work, and it’s currently being studied by Greenland’s government. Then, after achieving full independence, Greenland would have to choose between entering into a free association agreement or some other special arrangement with the United States.
How Are the Leaders of Greenland and Denmark Reacting?
It is being said that Donald Trump has the attention of the governments of Greenland and Denmark. Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede has come forward last month and said that he is ready to negotiate with President Trump. Meanwhile, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is reportedly quite upset with Trump’s determination to acquire Greenland.
She is touring Europe to garner support among allies for Denmark’s claim on Greenland. So, if President Trump is counting on the support of the people in Greenland to finalize the deal, he still needs to convince some people.
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