Greenland threatens Trump and Europe with a pivot to China
By Tural Heybatov
Greenland is warning Europe and the United States that it may turn to China for help if Western investors do not move quickly to support the island’s mining sector.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Greenland’s Minister for Business and Mineral Resources, Naaja Nathanielsen, cautioned that companies from the U.S. and Europe must accelerate their investments or risk being replaced by others — specifically, China. According to the minister, Greenland seeks to build and diversify its own business sector, and that requires foreign investment. When asked about the possibility of working with China, she warned that if the U.S. and EU fail to engage, Greenland will look for alternatives.
The memorandum of understanding on mineral cooperation between Greenland and the United States — signed during Donald Trump's first term — is set to expire. After the change of administration in Washington, Greenland tried to reach a new agreement with the Biden team, but those efforts failed. Now that Trump has returned to power, instead of signaling a willingness to invest, he is making expansionist statements.
Source: Euronews
Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. After World War II, the U.S. — having emerged relatively unscathed — began setting the rules for its allies. Since 1951, a U.S.-Danish defense agreement has allowed the American Pituffik Air Base to operate on the island.
Trump first expressed interest in acquiring resource-rich Greenland during his initial term. In 2019, he stated that the U.S. wanted to purchase Greenland, but Denmark firmly refused to even consider the proposal. At the time, Trump was talking about a purchase — not annexation or support for independence. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the idea absurd. “Greenland is not for sale. Greenland is not Danish property. Greenland belongs to Greenland. I truly hope this is not meant seriously,” Lenta.ru quoted her as saying.
The idea of becoming part of the United States also found little favor with Greenland’s leadership. Trump, somewhat taken aback, backed off. The last time the U.S. seriously considered buying Greenland was in 1946, when it viewed the island as a strategic asset in the early stages of the Cold War with the Soviet Union. Given Europe’s post-war weakness and fear of the USSR, the proposal seemed plausible, but Copenhagen was insulted by the offer, and Greenland remained a Danish territory.
Source: Reuters
Years passed. Due to global warming, glaciers began to melt, opening up possibilities for new trade routes. Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo once predicted that new Arctic shipping lanes could rival the Suez and Panama Canals. In addition, thawing permafrost unlocked access to Greenland’s vast mineral wealth — including rare earth elements, with reserves estimated at nearly 39 million tons.
These developments have made the island particularly attractive. With Trump back in office, he appears determined to revisit unfinished business. Today, Europe is again weakened — this time by Russia’s war in Ukraine — and Washington believes it can dictate terms.
There is also a military dimension to this issue. As Lenta.ru reports, the U.S. is rapidly increasing its presence in the Arctic to counter both Russia and China. “Whoever controls Greenland will control the Arctic. It is the most strategically important location in the Arctic — perhaps in the world,” said Walter Berbrick, head of the Arctic Studies Group at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, as quoted by the Russian outlet.
However, the U.S. is now using different instruments of influence. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has warned that the United States will not allow Greenland to fall under Chinese dependence. He also called on Denmark to recognize Greenland’s “aspirations for independence.” In response to Trump’s rhetoric, Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen wrote on Facebook: “We must clearly, calmly, and firmly show the American president that Greenland is ours.”
Source: insideclimatenews
In this context, China may become a pretext for U.S. intervention in Greenland and for Washington to set its own terms. According to Rubio, the U.S. will not allow China “to just come in now and throw a pile of money at the Greenlanders.”
China’s interest in the Arctic is longstanding. For years, it has offered to invest in Greenland’s development, while the U.S. and Denmark have been hesitant to commit funds. As the BBC reported in 2018, neither the U.S. nor Denmark had made significant investments in Greenland for many years. The island’s capital, Nuuk, remained relatively poor, with locals gathering daily in the city center to sell items for cash. China had submitted bids to build infrastructure on the island, but both Danish and American officials signaled their intention to block such projects. Interestingly, some Inuit residents interviewed by the BBC viewed Chinese investment as a positive opportunity. While the then-premier and foreign minister declined to comment, a former Greenlandic prime minister acknowledged that China could be beneficial for the island.
Indeed, China could prove useful to Greenland. This is why in her Financial Times interview, Minister Naaja Nathanielsen urged Europe and the United States to act swiftly.
“We had hoped that the Trump administration would be more willing to engage in a dialogue with Greenland on developing the mining sector. Instead, we’re getting ugly hints of a takeover,” she said.
So far, those hopes have not materialized. The U.S. is willing to invest — but only in territories it controls, not in those that belong to others.
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