US President Donald Trump’s accelerated push to seize Greenland has transformed a once-quirky idea into a full-blown diplomatic crisis, with observers warning it could deal a near-fatal blow to the post-war transatlantic order.
Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said on Tuesday that the island’s population and authorities needed to start preparing for a possible military invasion, even as it remained an unlikely scenario. Trump has threatened to impose a 10 per cent tariff next month and 25 per cent in June on eight European countries to pressure Denmark into selling Greenland to the US. The European Union is considering retaliation.
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Home to the world’s eighth-largest reserves of rare earths, as well as other critical minerals needed for electronics, defence systems and green technologies, Greenland is geographically close to North America but remains politically tied to Denmark.
Greenland’s mineral wealth, especially in rare earth deposits, has long generated interest, with Trump saying in 2019 that the territory’s acquisition would be “strategically nice” for the US. But realising this potential has been impeded by logistical challenges, environmental considerations and opposition from residents.
Overlooking key North Atlantic and Arctic shipping lanes, Greenland’s importance has grown as Washington and its G7 partners have sought to reduce their dependence on China’s dominance in processing critical minerals.
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