The US will invest billions of dollars in Greenland and make the island’s inhabitants “rich,” President Donald Trump said on Sunday.
In a post on his social-media platform Truth Social, President Trump vowed to transform Greenland if it becomes part of the US.
“As I made clear during my Joint Address to Congress, the United States strongly supports the people of Greenland’s right to determine their own future,” President Trump wrote.
“We will continue to KEEP YOU SAFE, as we have since World War II. We are ready to INVEST BILLIONS OF DOLLARS to create new jobs and MAKE YOU RICH — And, if you so choose, we welcome you to be a part of the Greatest Nation anywhere in the World, the United States of America!”
During President Trump’s recent address to Congress, he said he respects the right of Greenlanders to determine their nation’s future.
“One way or the other, they’re going to get it,” he added.
President Trump has said on multiple occasions that he believes US ownership of Greenland is “an absolute necessity” for national security.
In mid-January, Greenland’s Prime Minister Múte Egede indicated his desire to deepen ties with the US, including boosting defense in the Arctic region and cooperating to exploit the island’s massive mineral wealth.
In an interview with Fox, Egede said that he was all for a strong, close partnership with the US, but that Greenlanders don’t want to be part of the US.
“We don’t want to be Danes. We don’t even want to be Americans. We want to be Greenlanders. But we know that we have a lot…to cooperate together with, especially with the defense and security for the last years, we also have a strong partnership between our countries. So, I believe we have a lot to cooperate with.”
He added, “We will always be a strong partner for [the] US. We are close neighbors. We have been cooperating in the last 80 years. And I think, in the future, they have a lot to offer to cooperate with. But we want to also be clear, we don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be a part of [the] US, but we want strong cooperation together with [the] US.”
Host Brett Baier asked Egede whether he would be open to expanding America’s military presence on Greenland. The US already has a base on the island.
“It’s a really important military base, especially for all of us in the North American continent and especially for your national security, and your national security is our security. And we know…we need to be more clear with the defense in the Arctic area. So, we are open to discuss about how to defend our country, your country, all the Arctic, all the Northern American countries, and all the Western alliances.”
The Danish government has made it clear that Greenland is not for sale, but also conveyed its willingness “to discuss any other US request regarding the island.”
American forces have been stationed on the island since World War II. The US maintains a military base on Greenland, and has a defense agreement with Denmark, under which it can build additional military sites.
Greenland played an important military role during the Cold War, hosting US ballistic missile early-warning infrastructure.