US President Donald Trump on July 8 reiterated his ambition to bring Greenland under US control, claiming the move is necessary to "protect the world." His renewed remarks have revived global attention on the strategically located Arctic island, which is rich in critical minerals and occupies a key position in North Atlantic security.
Greenland's location above the Arctic Circle has made it increasingly important amid rising geopolitical tensions, climate change and growing competition for Arctic shipping routes and natural resources. Trump's repeated calls to acquire the island have unsettled NATO allies and drawn firm opposition from both Denmark and Greenland.
Greenland is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, a longstanding US ally. Both the Danish and Greenlandic governments have rejected Trump's proposals, with Greenland's leaders maintaining that only its people can determine the island's future.
Home to around 56,000 people, most of them Inuit, Greenland has become a focal point in the strategic rivalry among the United States, Russia and China.
Why does Trump want Greenland?
Trump has repeatedly argued that Greenland is vital to US and global security.
Speaking during a NATO summit on July 8, he said, "Greenland is very important to the United States, but it's not important to Denmark. We need it for protection of the world, not just the United States."
Earlier this year, Trump declined to rule out military action to secure US ownership of the island before later saying military options were no longer being considered.
He has also argued that US control of Greenland is necessary to counter Russian and Chinese influence in the Arctic, although his claims about Chinese and Russian military activity near Greenland have been disputed.
Why is Greenland strategically important?
Greenland lies northeast of Canada, with more than two-thirds of its territory inside the Arctic Circle.
Its location has been strategically significant since the Second World War, when the United States occupied the island to prevent Nazi Germany from gaining control and to safeguard vital North Atlantic shipping routes.
Today, climate change is accelerating the melting of Arctic ice, opening new maritime routes and increasing global competition for access to the region's vast natural resources.
Growing competition in the Arctic
China declared itself a "near-Arctic state" in 2018 and unveiled plans for a "Polar Silk Road" under its Belt and Road Initiative to strengthen its Arctic presence.
At the time, then US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned against allowing the Arctic to become "a new South China Sea" marked by militarisation and competing territorial claims.
Russia has also expanded its military footprint across the Arctic by reopening Soviet-era bases, modernising infrastructure and strengthening its Northern Fleet. Since launching its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has continued to emphasise the Arctic's strategic importance while warning that it will respond to increased NATO activity in the region.
The US already has a military presence in Greenland
The United States already operates the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland under a 1951 defence agreement with Denmark.
The base supports missile warning, missile defence and space surveillance missions for both the United States and NATO.
Greenland also overlooks the strategically important GIUK (Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom) Gap, a vital maritime corridor where NATO monitors Russian naval movements in the North Atlantic.
Security experts argue that the US already enjoys extensive military access to Greenland.
Thomas Crosbie, an associate professor of military operations at the Royal Danish Defence College, told The Associated Press that changing Greenland's sovereignty would not provide Washington with any meaningful military advantage because the United States already receives the access it requires through its alliance with Denmark.
Denmark has further expanded military cooperation with Washington by allowing greater access to US forces under agreements signed in recent years. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has also said Denmark could terminate the agreement if the US attempted to annex Greenland.
Greenland's vast mineral wealth
Greenland possesses significant reserves of rare earth minerals used in smartphones, electric vehicle batteries, computers, renewable energy technologies and defence equipment.
These resources have attracted growing interest from the United States and other Western countries seeking to reduce dependence on China's dominance in critical mineral supply chains.
However, extracting these resources remains difficult because of Greenland's harsh Arctic environment, limited infrastructure and stringent environmental regulations.