US Purchase of Greenland Being ‘Actively Discussed,’ Says White House’s Leavitt
The press secretary said ‘all options are always on the table’ as President Donald Trump negotiates the acquisition of the world’s largest island.
President Donald Trump and administration officials are working behind the scenes to negotiate the purchase of Greenland from Denmark, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Jan. 7.
“That’s something that’s currently being actively discussed by the president and his national security team,” Leavitt said during the first White House briefing of the new year.
“The president has been very open and clear with all of you and with the world that he views it in the best interest of the United States to deter Russian and Chinese aggression in the Arctic region, and so that’s why his team is currently talking about what a potential purchase would look like.”
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Jan. 7 that he plans to meet with Danish officials next week.
Leavitt said Trump’s interest in Greenland is in line with his agenda to secure the Western hemisphere. The administration believes a change in ownership would give the United States “more control over the Arctic region … ensuring that China and Russia and our adversaries cannot continue their aggression in this very important and strategic region,” according to the press secretary.
“And there would be many other benefits as well, that again, the president and his national security team are currently talking about,” Leavitt said.
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Discussions among administration officials include a broad range of options, according to the White House.
“I know that past presidents and past leaders have often ruled things out. They’ve often been very open about ruling things in and basically broadcasting their foreign policy strategy to the rest of the world, not just to our allies, but most egregiously, to our adversaries,” Leavitt said. “That’s not something this president does.”
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If diplomatic solutions fail to materialize, a military takeover is possible, she suggested.
“All options are always on the table for President Trump as he examines what’s in the best interest of the United States, but I will just say that the president’s first option always has been diplomacy,” Leavitt said.
Foreign ministers of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden issued a joint statement on Jan. 6 reiterating the nations’ commitments to working with the United States on security in the region while also rejecting any attempts to take Greenland by force.
“Security in the Arctic rests on respect for the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law, including the inviolability of borders,” the statement reads.
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“We collectively reiterate that matters concerning Denmark and Greenland are for Denmark and Greenland to decide alone.”
Denmark first colonized Greenland in approximately 1721 and has controlled the vast arctic territory, with a population today of fewer than 60,000, since 1751.
Leavitt pointed to U.S. federal government foreign policy objectives outlined over several past centuries that included the acquisition of Greenland.
“This is something that presidents dating back to the 1800s have said is advantageous for America’s national security,” Leavitt said.
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A State Department report from 1868 encouraged the purchase of Greenland for “political and commercial” reasons, listing “great mineral wealth” among the motives to acquire the territory.
“Such vast fisheries and extensive coasts and numerous harbors, especially with abundant good coal there, must greatly antedate the period when the United States will command the commerce of the world,” said the report, which was authorized by Secretary of State William Seward. A year earlier, Seward had brokered America’s purchase of Alaska from Russia.
Under President Harry Truman’s leadership, Secretary of State James Byrnes proposed buying Greenland in 1946 for $100 million in gold. The plan was met with resistance from Danish leaders.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s administration also considered the acquisition of Greenland a national security priority, according to a 1955 recommendation from Secretary of Defense Charles Wilson and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The United States and Denmark signed a treaty agreement in 1951, with subsequent extensions and modifications, that allows U.S. military base installations and operations in exchange for defense.
