The US president has stated that the island is essential for constructing the Golden Dome missile defense system.
US President Donald Trump has said that America has to gain control of Greenland for national security reasons, as the island is vital for building the proposed Golden Dome missile defense system.
In recent weeks, Trump’s statements about Greenland have become more intense. The US president has been increasingly insistent on obtaining the territory from Denmark by any means, and has hinted at the possibility of using force to annex the island. On Wednesday, he presented a new reason, arguing that having control of Greenland is necessary for his Golden Dome missile defense shield plan to be realized.
“The United States requires Greenland for national security purposes. It is crucial for the Golden Dome we are building. NATO should lead the way for us to acquire it,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump announced the Golden Dome initiative early last year. The system, which is expected to include space – based components and options for preemptive strikes, is projected to cost over $542 billion in two decades.
Trump claimed that “NATO will be far more powerful and effective if Greenland is in the hands of the US,” and added that without America, the bloc “would not be an effective force or deterrent.”
The US president also repeated his claim that if the US doesn’t take Greenland, Russia and China will do so. Both Moscow and Beijing, as well as regional officials, have dismissed this claim.
Early in his second term, Trump put forward his plans to annex Greenland, and in recent weeks, he has renewed the push to acquire the Danish autonomous territory “one way or the other.” While Copenhagen has shown willingness to cooperate with the US within the NATO framework, it maintains that the future of the island should be decided by its people, who voted in 2008 to keep their self – governing status.
On Tuesday, at a joint press conference with his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, Greenland Prime Minister Jens – Frederik Nielsen reaffirmed the island’s commitment to Denmark and the EU. Trump responded by saying, “that’s gonna be a big problem for him.”