What to watch as President Trump’s team prepares for Denmark talks

The Trump administration is preparing a high-stakes meeting with Danish officials next week to discuss how the United States could acquire the world’s largest island.

The White House has frequently talked about seizing Greenland following a weekend military operation to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, raising alarm in Europe about Washington’s territorial ambitions.

President Donald Trump, who has long aspired to make Greenland part of the United States, insisted he was “very serious” about acquiring Greenland, saying the mineral-rich and sparsely populated island is essential to national security.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has since called on President Trump to “stop the threats”, while the Greenlandic leader said the concept of U.S. control of the territory was “illusory”.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that he plans to meet with senior government officials next week to discuss the situation. This was done at the request of Danish Foreign Minister Loke Rasmussen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt.

CNBC will highlight four key issues ahead of the conference.

Mr. Rubio was asked by reporters on Wednesday whether he would withdraw the option of using U.S. troops to occupy Greenland.

“I’m not here to talk about Denmark or military intervention,” Rubio said, reiterating his plans to meet with Danish officials next week. “We will discuss it with them then, but we are not adding anything further today.”

His comments came as the White House confirmed that Trump and his national security team were “actively” discussing the possibility of purchasing Greenland, saying that while diplomacy was always the first option, all options remained on the table, including military force.

Trump previously sought to purchase Greenland during his first term as US president in 2019, only to be told the island was not for sale.

Meanwhile, the prospect of US military action in Greenland provoked a strong reaction from Denmark’s Frederiksen.

“I think we should take seriously what the president of the United States has said about wanting Greenland,” Frederiksen told Danish broadcaster TV2 on Monday, according to a translation by CNBC.

“But I also want to be clear that if the United States chooses to attack another NATO member militarily, everything will stop, including our own NATO and, by extension, the security that has been provided to us since the end of World War II,” she added.

Leading Republicans and Democrats also oppose the idea of ​​using military force to occupy Greenland.

European leaders, previously reluctant to use megaphone diplomacy to defend Greenland, reversed course earlier in the week.

“The Kingdom of Denmark, including Greenland, is part of NATO,” said a joint letter released Tuesday by several European leaders.

He added: “Greenland belongs to the people. Denmark and Greenland, and they alone, decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland.”

Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard, a senior fellow in the foreign policy and diplomacy department at the Danish Institute of International Studies, said diplomatic engagement should be the main focus when European policymakers meet with Rubio next week.

Other measures that European lawmakers should consider include stronger political statements, lobbying U.S. officials who do not want military action in Greenland, and potentially threatening economic retaliation, Sondergaard said.

But he cited other security concerns for European countries, including Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and acknowledged that Europe likely has its limits in the worst-case scenario, in which the United States attempts to take Greenland by force.

“Greenland is a territory that’s not very easy to defend militarily. It’s a very large island with very little infrastructure, so this idea of ​​having some sort of military defense is not something we’re considering here,” Sondergaard told CNBC’s “Europe Early Edition” on Thursday.

Previous polls have shown that while an overwhelming majority of Greenlanders oppose U.S. rule, an overwhelming majority support independence from Denmark.

Tony Sage, CEO of Critical Metals, which is developing one of the world’s largest rare earth assets in southern Greenland, said one aspect of the situation that seems to be overlooked is that most Greenlanders support independence.

“Personally, I believe we have gained a lot of experience in Greenland over the past two years, but our partners who have been in Greenland for 20 years know the people very well. They are very stubborn and they want independence,” Sage told CNBC’s “China Connection” on Thursday.

“So I believe that once we announce a referendum, we will move towards independence. That’s where Denmark and the United States really have to understand this situation,” he continued. “If we actually push for a referendum, who will benefit most from that independence?”

Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark with a population of about 57,000, was granted greater autonomy under the Autonomy Act in 2009, but Denmark remains responsible for the island’s foreign and defense policy.

This law also gave the island the right to hold an independence referendum. Most political parties in Greenland support independence, but disagree about the pace of achievement.

As he once again set his sights on the vast, sparsely populated Arctic island, President Trump suggested that Russia and China pose a security challenge to the United States in Greenland.

“This is very strategic,” President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday. “Currently, Greenland is filled with Russian and Chinese ships. We need Greenland from a national security perspective.”

But analysts have questioned President Trump’s assertion that Greenland must be acquired on national security grounds, and European leaders have said Arctic security is a joint goal.

Marion Messmer, director of the International Security Program at Chatham House think tank in London, acknowledged that it is true that both Russia and China have increased military activity in the Arctic in recent years. And if Russia were to fire a missile at the United States, it would likely fly over Greenland.

“What is not clear, however, is why Washington needs full control of Greenland to protect itself,” Messmer said in a written analysis published Tuesday.

He cited the fact that the United States already has a presence at the Pitufik Cosmodrome, and a decades-old defense agreement with Denmark that allows the U.S. government to continue using the base.