Greenland’s prime minister, Múte Egede, reacted to President-elect Donald Trump’s ambition to buy Greenland and said that the country is not for sale and never will be. “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,” Múte Egede, said in a written comment. Donald Trump on Sunday announced that he picked Ken Howery, a former envoy to Sweden, as his ambassador to Copenhagen and then commented that the US feels the ownership of Greenland is absolute necessary. “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The statement came as Donald Trump expressed his wish to convert Canada into the 51st state of the US and also buy the Panama Canal.
As far as Greenland is concerned, Donald Trump’s proposal is not new as during his first presidency too, he suggested buying the island but the proposal was rejected by both Greenland and Denmark.
At that time, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called Trump’s offer absurd.
Why does US want to acquire Greenland?
Since 1867, the US has on several occasions considered or attempted to buy Greenland which is not a continent but the world’s largest island. Greenland is part of the continent of North America, but it has close geopolitical ties to Europe and has received EU funding as it’s classed as an overseas territory associated with the bloc via Denmark.
Russia has recently sought to claim the territory to to Greenland’s Exclusive Economic Zone. Greenland has access to the Arctic, where the nations are racing for resources. Greenland’s natural resources include gold, silver, copper and uranium.