Explainer-Greenland’s history as a Danish territory and why Trump wants it

By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen, Soren Jeppesen and Stine Jacobsen

COPENHAGEN, Jan 7 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump has renewed his ambition to take control of Greenland for national security reasons and questioned whether Denmark has any legal right to the Arctic island. The debate has revived scrutiny of how Greenland became part of Denmark, its current self-rule and path to independence, and Washington’s military footprint.

HOW DID DENMARK GET GREENLAND?

Greenland was inhabited by Inuit peoples from Asia and North America intermittently from around 2,500 BC. Around 985 AD, Vikings led by Erik the Red settled in southern Greenland, farming and building churches. Around the same time, ancestors of today’s Inuit arrived, living as hunters and gatherers. They became the dominant culture, pushing out Viking settlers around 1400.

Denmark colonised Greenland in the 18th century when missionary Hans Egede arrived in 1721, marking the start of the colonial era. A statue of Egede still stands on a hilltop in the capital Nuuk’s colonial harbour, seen by many Greenlanders as a symbol of lost Inuit traditions.

In 1916, the United States bought the Danish West Indies – now the U.S. Virgin Islands – for $25 million in gold. As part of that treaty, Washington declared it would not object to the Danish government extending its “political and economic interests to the whole of Greenland,” formally recognising Danish sovereignty.

WHAT IS GREENLAND’S STATUS NOW?

Greenland shifted from colony to formal territory in 1953 under Denmark’s constitution, though Greenlanders were not consulted. Any sale would require a constitutional amendment. Since 2009, Greenland can declare independence through a self-rule process requiring a referendum and Danish parliamentary approval.

Autonomy is extensive but excludes foreign affairs and defence unless agreed. Autonomy is extensive but excludes foreign affairs and defence unless agreed. Greenland has about 57,000 people limited infrastructure, and no roads between its around 17 towns.

HOW ARE RELATIONS BETWEEN DENMARK AND GREENLAND?

Relations have been strained by revelations of historical misconduct. In the 1950s, Danish authorities forcibly relocated Inuit to larger towns, marginalising the practices and languages of indigenous people who make up almost 90% of the population. Denmark apologised in 2022 for a 1950s experiment that sent Greenlandic children to Denmark.

Records show thousands of women and girls as young as 13 were fitted with intrauterine devices without consent between 1966 and 1991, when Greenland gained control over healthcare. Denmark apologised in 2025 for the decades-long birth control campaign.

A 2025 documentary alleged Denmark and companies profited from a cryolite mine between 1853 and 1987 without benefiting locals. Cryolite, used in aluminum production, was mined in Greenland at the world’s largest deposit.

WHAT IS GREENLAND’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE EU?

Greenland joined the European Community in 1973 via Denmark but withdrew in 1985 after gaining home rule. It now holds Overseas Country and Territory status with the EU, maintaining a special fisheries arrangement.

WHAT IS THE U.S. PRESENCE?

The U.S. military maintains a permanent presence at Pituffik air base in northwest Greenland under a 1951 agreement granting freedom to build bases with Danish and Greenlandic notification. 

Denmark has historically accommodated the U.S. presence because Copenhagen does not have the capability to defend Greenland and benefits from U.S. security guarantees through NATO.

WHY DOES TRUMP WANT GREENLAND?

Trump has said acquiring Greenland is a national security priority. The shortest route from Europe to North America runs via Greenland, making it important for the U.S. ballistic missile early-warning system. Nuuk is closer to New York than to Copenhagen.

Greenland sits at a geopolitical crossroads amid Arctic militarisation by NATO, Russia and China. The U.S. wants to expand its military footprint, including radars to monitor waters used by Russian vessels and submarines. The island also holds mineral, oil and gas wealth, though development has been slow.

WHAT DO GREENLANDERS WANT?

 Polls indicate a majority of Greenlanders support independence in principle. But many warn against rushing due to economic reliance on Denmark and becoming overly exposed to the United States if independence is pursued too quickly.

Fishing accounts for over 90% of exports, while Danish subsidies cover about half the public budget, funding hospitals and schools and underpinning infrastructure for the vast sparsely populated territory.

Independence could allow association with the U.S. under a Compact of Free Association, similar to agreements with Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands.

COFA typically provides U.S. services and military protection in exchange for defence access, but whether Greenland would benefit depends on the scale of support and the pace of economic diversification beyond fishing.

WHAT DO DENMARK AND GREENLAND SAY?

When Trump offered to buy the island during his first presidential term, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called it “absurd”.

Frederiksen and Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen reiterated in December 2025 that Greenland could not be annexed and international security did not justify such a move. 

(Additional reporting by Johan Ahlander and Alessandro ParodiEditing by Frances Kerry and Ros Russell)