From May until late July, Greenland enjoys continuous daylight. Yet, there’s a lot we don’t truly understand about the world’s largest island.
Even though about 80% of Greenland is covered by a massive ice sheet that’s 2.6 miles thick, it’s experiencing quite a bit of interest. Since he returned to office in 2025, President Donald Trump has expressed an ambition for acquiring vast regions of this frozen terrain as part of the United States.
This week, the White House indicated he’s willing to “use the U.S. military” for this purpose. But the question arises—why pursue an acquisition of an almost entirely uninhabitable island?
“Greenland holds significance for technology, security, and space exploration,” remarked Tom Duns, who was part of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission during Trump’s first term.
“Trump has a long-term vision for the area,” he added.
The challenge? The island has just 60,000 residents, with a quarter residing in the capital, Nuuk, and is already claimed by another nation.
Though it’s geographically part of North America, Greenland is considered an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, which is aligned with the European Union and allies with the United States.
Denmark and EU countries have been firm, asserting that the land is not for sale and warning against any military offensive. However, there’s still uncertainty regarding their potential responses.
Currently, the U.S. maintains one military base in Greenland, but Trump is eager for more. Initially, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio floated the idea of military action, but he later retracted, suggesting instead a desire to work diplomatically with Denmark and Greenland for territory acquisition.
As Trump pointed out during a flight on Air Force One, “Greenland is surrounded by Russian and Chinese vessels. From a national security perspective, we need Greenland.”
Justina Bouzinaite-Flory, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, described the island’s position as critical, especially for tracking rivals like China and Russia.
“Holding such territory allows for new technologies to be deployed for observation,” she explained, emphasizing that Greenland can serve as a vast observatory platform.
She highlighted the “Greenland-Iceland-UK Gap,” a critical maritime zone over which Russia could deploy submarines into European and American waters.
Furthermore, Greenland plays a pivotal role in detecting aerial threats. The Pitufik Space Base (formerly Thule Air Base), stationed in Greenland since the Cold War, is designed for missile warning, missile defense, and space surveillance, operating continuously.
According to various analyses, the quickest route for Russian ballistic missiles to the U.S. would likely see them traversing over the North Pole and Greenland.
Beyond defense, Greenland is also emerging as an attractive site for power-hungry data centers, given the natural cooling provided by its icy environment.
“It’s a prime opportunity for American innovation,” noted Dans, hinting at extensive upcoming investments in this sector over the next few years.
Greenland is rich in rare earth minerals, essential for various high-tech applications—from smartphones to military systems. Significant reserves exist in China, which has previously utilized its control over these resources as leverage in tariff disputes with the U.S.
“Trump is akin to a real estate mogul,” stated Clayton Allen of the Eurasia Group. “Greenland presents valuable strategic and economic opportunities over the next few decades.”
Interestingly, Trump isn’t the first president to eye Greenland. During WWII, American forces occupied the island when Nazi Germany took control of Denmark. After the war, in 1946, President Harry Truman even made a bid to purchase Greenland for $100 million in gold and part of Alaska, aimed at bolstering U.S. defenses against Soviet bombers—a proposal that ultimately fell through.
So, the broader context suggests that Trump aims to reshape how Greenland fits into U.S. strategy. As Dans concluded, “President Trump has the vision and imagination for this. Being a builder, it’s an intrinsic skill of his.”
