The future of Greenland, the island that Donald Trump desperately wants to annex, will be discussed in the White House on Wednesday. What’s behind this obsession?
Jan 14, 2026, 4:34 p.mJan 14, 2026, 4:34 p.m
Renzo Ruf, Washington / ch media
Summit of the decision: A delegation from Denmark and Greenland is expected at the White House in Washington on Wednesday. Hosted by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio; The two high-ranking representatives of Donald Trump’s government want to discuss American interest in the world’s largest island, which the president has re-energized in recent days.
Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, in the arctic winter.Image: keystone
Trump recently threatened again to invade Greenland if Denmark was not prepared to cede the island to the USA after 300 years. Denmark and Greenland, on the other hand, take the position that there is nothing to negotiate – because, firstly, the island is not for sale and secondly, the security policy crisis conjured up by Trump does not correspond to reality. “If we have to choose between the USA and Denmark, then we choose Denmark, NATO and the EU,” said Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the Prime Minister of Greenland, on Tuesday.
The Trump administration doesn’t seem to care. Senior officials are questioning Denmark’s claims to the island and calling for a change of hands. Trump recently said that for “psychological reasons” it was very important to him that Greenland became American property. Why is the American president so obsessed with Greenland?
Greenland serves as a bulwark against Russia and China
Trump is convinced that the US is in a race for Greenland against both Russia and China. The American president recently said that the island is teeming with ships from enemy powers. For strategic reasons, Washington cannot allow Moscow or Beijing to suddenly establish a presence on the island. The USA still has a base on Greenland, the Pituffik Space Base, where around 150 members of the armed forces are stationed. “We have to defend it,” said Trump.
Donald Trump has his eye on Greenland.Image: keystone
What is interesting in this context is that in the American security strategy, which was published with great fanfare by the White House shortly before Christmas, the Arctic in general and Greenland in particular are not mentioned at all.
Greenland is the doorstep to the Arctic
Of course, commercial considerations also play a role in the courtship for Greenland. Because the ice in the Arctic is melting, geostrategists assume that new shipping routes will soon open in the far north. Now the USA cannot prevent other countries from opening up new sea routes with modern ships that can plow through ice if necessary.
But Washington wants to use an increased presence in Greenland to make it clear to China and Russia that this is territory in the American sphere of influence. Theoretically, the USA could also achieve this goal by expanding the number of bases on the island again on the basis of an existing security alliance – but Trump wants more. He recently said that he did not want China or Russia as neighbors in Greenland.
Greenland has many resources
There are many valuable raw materials in Greenland’s soil. The problem: The harsh weather – on Tuesday the thermometer in the capital Nuuk showed 3 degrees Celsius below zero – makes the exploitation of anorthosite, zinc, cobalt, gold and precious stones extremely difficult. Massive investments in infrastructure would be necessary to exploit these deposits, which would have a negative impact on the profit margin. Investors are therefore shying away from Greenland.
However, Trump doesn’t seem to care. In public statements he repeatedly points out how many resources there are in Greenland.
Greenland is located in the Western Hemisphere
Trump sees himself as a president who wants to make history. And because his childhood was heavily influenced by the Second World War, he is under the impression that presidents are remembered when they expand the sphere of US power. That is why, in his second term in office, he has set himself the goal of massively increasing his country’s influence in the Western Hemisphere – as he recently demonstrated with his intervention in Venezuela.
In the eyes of Trump, a former construction lion, Greenland is the crown jewel of the hemisphere. The fact that traditional maps give the impression that Greenland is almost as big as the African continent probably also plays a role. Although this is not the truth, but rather a side effect of cartography, it still seems to have been burned into the brains of many Americans.
Greenland is a prestige project for Trump
Of course, it is a (bad) joke when there is already speculation in Washington about renaming Greenland Trumpland. But the past few months have shown that the American president wants to adorn as many government projects as possible with his name: from the concert hall to an annex of the White House to an airport. What’s still missing from this portfolio is an island. (aargauerzeitung.ch)