🔗 Share this article

One of Donald Trump’s senior advisors has ramped up the pressure on the Danish government by challenging Copenhagen’s claim to Greenland.

Military Intervention Dismissed

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically military intervention would not be necessary to take over the northern landmass because “no nation would engage the United States in combat over the future of Greenland”.

“The idea of military action against Greenland? Its population numbers just a population of 30,000 people,” he incorrectly stated, the correct number being closer to 57,000.

Miller further proposed that Copenhagen lacks a valid claim to the region, which is a former Danish colony and remains part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Growing Tensions

These remarks follow a period of increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the US president’s renewed calls to annex Greenland.

The Danish foreign policy committee has convened an emergency session to discuss the bilateral ties with the United States.

In his interview, Miller asserted that dominion of the island could be gained without armed conflict due to its limited number of residents.

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The core issue is on what grounds does Denmark have to exercise sovereignty over Greenland? What legal foundation of their ownership claim?” he asked.

Miller continued: “The US is the power of NATO. For the US to protect Arctic interests to safeguard the alliance, obviously Greenland should be incorporated into the United States.”

He stated there was “no requirement to even consider or discuss” a armed takeover in Greenland, adding: “No country would wage war against the US militarily.”

International Reactions

His comments came after Trump said over the weekend, following events in Venezuela, that the US needed Greenland “urgently”.

The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, responded by saying that an American aggression against a NATO ally would mean the collapse of the defensive pact and “the postwar security order”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a forceful rebuke, calling on the US president to abandon his “fantasies about annexation” and accused the US of being “completely and utterly unacceptable”.

Historical Context and Current Stance

The aide's assertions came after his wife, podcaster Katie Miller, shared a map on social media of Greenland under a US flag with the caption “SOON”.

When questioned on the social media post, he responded by stating: “It has been the formal position of the US government from the start of this presidency... The president has been very clear about that.”

The territory was under colonial rule until 1953, when it was integrated of the Danish realm. The US has had a military base there, critical to its ballistic missile early warning system.

Recently, there has been increasing sentiment for self-rule, particularly after revelations about historical policies of Greenlandic people.

However, facing the prospect of acquisition talk, Greenland in March established a new unity government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its agreement stating: “Greenland belongs to us.”