{"id":2401223,"date":"2025-02-11T05:34:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T10:34:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/neither-state-nor-territory-trump-has-third-option-on-greenland\/"},"modified":"2025-02-11T05:36:05","modified_gmt":"2025-02-11T10:36:05","slug":"neither-state-nor-territory-trump-has-third-option-on-greenland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/neither-state-nor-territory-trump-has-third-option-on-greenland\/","title":{"rendered":"Neither State Nor Territory: Trump Has Third Option On Greenland"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fneither-state-nor-territory-trump-has-third-option-on-greenland%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2401223&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Teh article discusses President Donald Trump\u2019s renewed interest in acquiring Greenland amid geopolitical \u200dshifts in the\u200c Arctic. Greenland&#8217;s Prime Minister Mute Egede announced \u200da \u200dsnap election\u2062 for March 11,\u200d which is significant given the\u2064 U.S.governance&#8217;s interest in the\u200c territory. Trump has emphasized Greenland&#8217;s strategic importance for national\u200b security and its rich resources, but he faces opposition from Denmark regarding any annexation plans. \u200d <\/p>\n<p>The island has \u2062been\u2062 moving towards greater independence, with its population supporting self-governing measures in a 2008 \u200dreferendum. Analysts highlight concerns over potential threats from Russia and China in the\u200d Arctic, \u2062leading some\u2062 to argue that U.S. control or influence in Greenland is \u200ccritical \u2064for national\u2064 security. <\/p>\n<p>while purchasing Greenland is considered\u200b unlikely, an choice proposed is \u200da Compact of \u2063Free Association\u2063 (COFA), which woudl\u200d provide the U.S. a strategic \u2063military presence without full governance \u2063over the territory. The article concludes\u200d that \u200dany\u2063 changes\u200b in greenland\u2019s status will be heavily influenced by \u2062both local\u200c sentiment \u2062and international relations, particularly with denmark and\u2062 potential adversaries like \u200bRussia and China.\u2063 <\/p>\n<p>the article outlines the complexities of U.S.-Greenland relations in light of Trump&#8217;s interests and the evolving geopolitical landscape in the Arctic.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>President Donald Trump may or may not be able to bring Greenland under American control, but he does have options in the wake of geopolitical currents transforming Arctic statecraft.<\/p>\n<p>Greenland&rsquo;s prime minister <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/greenland-pm-proposes-march-11-election-2025-02-04\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> on Tuesday that the semi-autonomous Danish territory will hold a snap election on March 11 as Trump considers avenues to annex the island. In light of the White House&rsquo;s renewed acquisition interest, the top issue to be considered is likely Greenland&rsquo;s status as an independent state.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We are in the midst of a serious time. A time that we have never experienced in our country,&rdquo; Prime Minister Mute Egede wrote in a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">social media post reported<\/a> by Reuters. &ldquo;This is not the time for internal division.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump reignited a more than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.history.com\/news\/greenland-united-states-seward-cold-war\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">150-year-old<\/a> interest in the island just weeks before his second inauguration. In December, the president-elect began to preview a 21st-century form of the Monroe Doctrine with a newfound focus on American influence throughout the Western Hemisphere.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;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,&rdquo; Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/trump-greenland-norway-panama-canal-canada-a52858e3075f9b5ad95e78753293fc1f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> in his announcement of his ambassador to Denmark.<\/p>\n<p>Greenland not only remains at the nexus of Arctic transportation but also hosts a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/02\/07\/trump-is-right-america-needs-greenland-and-access-to-its-critical-resources\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">trove<\/a> of critical minerals that are key to competing in the next phase of the industrial revolution. The president, however, faces significant obstacles to his plans, including Copenhagen&rsquo;s opposition to his taking control of an island that is seemingly more interested in total independence than rule by a foreign power.<\/p>\n<p>The island&rsquo;s population of roughly 55,000 last voted on related measures in 2008, when 75 percent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/news\/worldnews\/europe\/greenland\/5594140\/Greenland-takes-step-toward-independence-from-Denmark.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">approved<\/a> a self-government referendum claiming a higher level of autonomy just shy of complete independence. Greenlanders voted to declare themselves a distinct people and recognized Greenlandic as the official language instead of Danish. The local population also took <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20101104074013\/http:\/\/geography.about.com\/od\/greenland\/a\/Greenland-Status.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">control<\/a> of their own law enforcement, legal system, and coast guard in addition to a greater share of the island&rsquo;s oil revenues.<\/p>\n<p>In February of last year, Greenland&rsquo;s government formally <a href=\"https:\/\/www.highnorthnews.com\/en\/greenland-new-arctic-strategy-defense-diplomacy-and-peace\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">declared<\/a> full independence was the ultimate goal in the nation&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/naalakkersuisut.gl\/Publikationer?types=&amp;subjects=&amp;page=1&amp;dates=2024_02_februar&amp;sc_lang=da\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Foreign, Security and Defense Policy 2024-2033<\/a>. Alexander Gray, a senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council and former chief of staff of the National Security Council under Trump, <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/20241126224539\/https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/opinion\/why-trump-really-should-buy-greenland-national-security-policy-58d9c2ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">outlined<\/a> in The Wall Street Journal last November why an independent Greenland represents a &ldquo;grave concern&rdquo; for U.S. security given the island&rsquo;s inability to protect the region by itself.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Russia and China are threatening the status quo in the Arctic,&rdquo; Gray wrote. <\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Moscow has claimed significant chunks of the Arctic Sea, including inside Greenland&rsquo;s Exclusive Economic Zone. Russian survey ships have encroached on Greenland&rsquo;s waters, and Russia is expanding its Arctic bases and formidable icebreaker fleet. China has declared itself a &ldquo;near-Arctic state,&rdquo; established a shipping network called the &ldquo;Polar Silk Road&rdquo; to bind Arctic communities closer to Beijing&rsquo;s economic and political agenda, and built its own fleet of icebreakers.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The Chinese, meanwhile, have a well-established history of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cfr.org\/backgrounder\/chinas-massive-belt-and-road-initiative\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">imposing Beijing&rsquo;s influence<\/a> on vulnerable regions of critical interest. In an interview with The Federalist, Gray characterized Trump&rsquo;s interest in acquiring Greenland as &ldquo;a real security threat we have to respond to.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Greenland has always been a potential threat to North America if a foreign adversary occupies it,&rdquo; Gray said, with the Chinese and the Russians both eager to implement a de facto takeover of one of the world&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.worldatlas.com\/geography\/the-10-least-densely-populated-places-in-the-world.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">least<\/a> densely populated islands. Gray thinks Greenland&rsquo;s separation from Denmark, however, is inevitable. It is not just a question of &ldquo;when,&rdquo; but of &ldquo;what&rsquo;s waiting for the Greenlanders on the other end.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Who do you want waiting for the Greenlanders,&rdquo; he said, &ldquo;Washington, Moscow, or Beijing?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Gray recommended in The Wall Street Journal weeks after the November election that Trump &ldquo;buy&rdquo; the island, but the Danes have vehemently rejected the idea that Greenland is for sale. In January, the Financial Times <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/ace02a6f-3307-43f8-aac3-16b6646b60f6?shareType=nongift\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a> on a &ldquo;fiery&rdquo; phone call between Trump and Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. The nearly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/update-1-u-s-house-democrats-to-introduce-impeachment-charges-against-trump-on-monday-sources\/\" title=\"UPDATE 1-U.S. House Democrats to introduce impeachment charges against Trump on Monday -sources\">hour-long phone call<\/a> came after Greenland&rsquo;s leader <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/international\/5080779-greenland-prime-minister-donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">signaled<\/a> a willingness to negotiate with the Republican White House.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Five current and former senior European officials briefed on the call said the conversation had gone very badly,&rdquo; the Times said. &ldquo;They added that Trump had been aggressive and confrontational following the Danish prime minister&rsquo;s comments that the island was not for sale, despite her offer of more co-operation on military bases and mineral exploitation.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Danish government <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/denmark-military-two-billion-boost-donald-trump-greenland-threat-2022685\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">announced<\/a> a more than $2 billion increase in Arctic defense spending roughly two weeks later. Gray, however, stressed additional security commitments from Denmark were not enough to guarantee America&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-u-s-to-end-combat-mission-in-iraq-by-end-of-2021\/\" title=\"Biden: U.S. to end combat mission in Iraq by end of 2021\">long-term security<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is a more fundamental interest,&rdquo; he said, leaving the president with another option beyond territorial acquisition and statehood. The former brings the risk of additional debt while the latter threatens to open a Pandora&rsquo;s box when it comes to the status of other districts and territories that could theoretically become states, such as Guam, Washington, D.C., and American Samoa. A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsweek.com\/donald-trump-greenland-takeover-plan-major-blow-poll-2022809\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">poll<\/a> of Greenlanders also found in January that just 6 percent supported the island becoming American, though researchers surveyed less than 500 citizens, and polls are not elections. But if the Danes don&rsquo;t want to sell Greenland and the locals don&rsquo;t want to form the 51st state, President Trump can pursue an agreement called a Compact of Free Association (COFA).<\/p>\n<p>Managed by the Department of the Interior, a COFA is a mutual agreement with select territories that are guaranteed U.S. support and protection in exchange for exclusive regional access. Under these compacts, co-opted states receive limited economic assistance and allow the American military to maintain an exclusive security presence without the host territory&rsquo;s forfeiture of national sovereignty. A COFA signed with Greenland would give the U.S. rights to manage regional security while the island maintains relative autonomy from both the United States and Denmark.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. currently has COFA agreements with a <a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/IF\/IF12194\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">trio<\/a> of Pacific nation-states. The U.S. provides military defense in exchange for military access, immigration privileges, and financial aid. COFA agreements govern the U.S. relationship with the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), and the Republic of Palau. The security arrangements give the Pentagon greater ability to counter Chinese aggression in the Pacific just as a compact with Greenland would provide an additional buffer in the Arctic.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I would call it kind of the intermediary option,&rdquo; Gray said, as Trump makes clear any shift in Greenland&rsquo;s relationship with Denmark will be within America&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mitch-mcconnells-media-tour-to-brag-about-defeating-gop-opponents-of-bidens-foreign-policy-was-remarkably-ill-advised\/\" title=\"Mitch McConnell\u2019s Media Tour To Brag About Defeating GOP Opponents Of Biden\u2019s Foreign Policy Was Remarkably Ill-Advised\">long-term national security interest<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think the people want to be with us,&rdquo; Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/crkezj07rzro\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">told<\/a> reporters last month after his explosive phone call with the Danish prime minister. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really know what claim Denmark has to it, but it would be a very unfriendly act if they didn&rsquo;t allow that to happen because it&rsquo;s for the protection of the free world.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Tristan Justice is a national correspondent for The Federalist and the co-author of &#8220;Fat and Unhappy: How &#8216;Body Positivity&#8217; Is Killing Us (and How to Save Yourself).&#8221; He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com. Sign up for Tristan&#8217;s email newsletter <a href=\"https:\/\/socialjusticeredux.substack.com\/about\">here<\/a>. Buy &#8220;Fat and Unhappy&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sz7EDAJI1c\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump explores options for Greenland amid changing Arctic dynamics<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2401224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Greenland-e1739136460996.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[47289,32504,3772,9225,3634],"class_list":["post-2401223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-greenland","tag-political-strategy","tag-state","tag-territory","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Greenland-e1739136460996.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2401223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2401223"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2401223\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2401227,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2401223\/revisions\/2401227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2401224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2401223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2401223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2401223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}