{"id":583,"date":"2026-01-10T05:24:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T05:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/?p=583"},"modified":"2026-01-10T05:24:32","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T05:24:32","slug":"trump-calls-for-us-control-of-greenland-over-security-concerns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/?p=583","title":{"rendered":"Trump Calls for US Control of Greenland Over Security Concerns","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"
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United States President Donald Trump<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/strong> has said the United States needs to \u201cown\u201d Greenland, arguing that outright control is necessary to prevent Russia and China from expanding their influence in the Arctic region.<\/p>\n

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump dismissed the idea of long-term leasing arrangements, saying ownership was the only way to guarantee security.<\/p>\n

\u201cCountries have to have ownership, and you defend ownership\u2014you don\u2019t defend leases,\u201d Trump said, responding to a question from the BBC<\/span><\/span><\/strong>. \u201cAnd we\u2019ll have to defend Greenland.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president added that the United States would pursue the goal \u201cthe easy way or the hard way,\u201d remarks that follow recent comments from the White House indicating it is examining the possibility of purchasing the territory. Officials have also declined to rule out more aggressive options, including annexation by force.<\/p>\n

Both Denmark<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/a> and Greenland<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/a> have firmly rejected the idea, stressing that the territory is not for sale. Danish officials have warned that any military action would threaten the foundations of the trans-Atlantic defence alliance.<\/p>\n

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Strategic importance in the Arctic<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Although Greenland is one of the world\u2019s most sparsely populated regions, its position between North America and the Arctic Ocean gives it major strategic value. The territory plays a key role in early-warning systems for missile detection and in monitoring naval activity in polar waters.<\/p>\n

Trump has repeatedly described Greenland as vital to US national security, claiming\u2014without providing evidence\u2014that Russian and Chinese vessels are increasingly active around the island.<\/p>\n

The United States already maintains a military presence at Pituffik Space Base<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, located on Greenland\u2019s north-western coast. The base has been operated by the US since World War Two and hosts more than 100 American personnel.<\/p>\n

Under existing agreements with Denmark, Washington has the authority to deploy additional troops to Greenland if it chooses. However, Trump said such arrangements fall short of what the US requires.<\/p>\n

\u201cCountries can\u2019t make nine-year deals or even 100-year deals,\u201d he said. \u201cThey have to have ownership.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Trump<\/p>\n

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Pushback from allies<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Trump insisted that his position was not directed at the people of rival nations but at their governments\u2019 strategic ambitions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love the people of China. I love the people of Russia,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I don\u2019t want them as a neighbour in Greenland. That\u2019s not going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that NATO<\/span><\/span><\/strong> allies needed to recognise the security implications of the Arctic.<\/p>\n

In response, Denmark\u2019s NATO partners\u2014including major European states and Canada\u2014issued statements backing Copenhagen, emphasizing that decisions about Greenland\u2019s future rest solely with Denmark and Greenland. They reaffirmed their commitment to Arctic security while calling for cooperation among allies rather than unilateral action.<\/p>\n

Allies also stressed the need to uphold international law, including the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity outlined in the United Nations<\/span><\/span><\/strong> Charter.<\/p>\n

\n

Renewed tensions and political fallout<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Concerns about Greenland\u2019s future intensified after Trump\u2019s recent use of military force against Venezuela to seize its president, Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/span><\/span><\/strong>, raising fears that similar tactics could be considered elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Trump previously floated the idea of buying Greenland in 2019 during his first term, an offer that was swiftly rejected.<\/p>\n

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio<\/span><\/span><\/strong> is expected to hold talks with Danish officials next week as diplomatic tensions continue.<\/p>\n

Greenland has also drawn growing international interest due to its natural resources, including rare earth minerals, uranium and iron, which are becoming more accessible as climate change accelerates ice melt. Scientists believe the island may also hold significant oil and gas reserves.<\/p>\n

In a joint statement released on Friday, Greenland\u2019s political leaders, including opposition parties, criticized Washington\u2019s rhetoric and reiterated their stance on self-determination.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do not want to be Americans, we do not want to be Danes\u2014we want to be Greenlanders,\u201d the statement said. \u201cThe future of Greenland must be decided by the Greenlandic people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

United States President Donald Trump has said the United States needs to \u201cown\u201d Greenland, arguing that outright control is necessary to prevent Russia and China from expanding their influence in the Arctic region. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump dismissed the idea of long-term leasing arrangements, saying ownership was the only way to guarantee security. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":1,"featured_media":584,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-583","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"link","format":"url"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=583"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":586,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583\/revisions\/586"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/584"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=583"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=583"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/al-ahwaz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=583"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}