The US president has argued that control of Greenland is a “strategic” necessity. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has tried to downplay Trump’s rhetoric, emphasizing the preferred option would be to buy Greenland.

US President Donald Trump is considering options that include military action to take control of Greenland, the White House said on Tuesday.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump views acquiring the mineral-rich Arctic island as a strategic national security priority to counter Russia and China.

“The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander in chief’s disposal,” she said in a statement.

Trump has renewed his interest in Greenland in recent days following the US military seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Trump has argued that US control of Greenland is necessary and “strategic” to counter growing Russian and Chinese activity in the Arctic.

The US already operates the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland.

Rubio downplays military option

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers that Trump’s preferred option was to buy Greenland from Denmark and that the discussions within the Trump administration did not signal an imminent invasion, media reports said.

US lawmakers from both parties have pushed back against the idea of military action.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said he did not think it was “appropriate” to take military action in Greenland, Politico reported.

Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego said he would seek to block any attempt to invade Greenland.

However, Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, said in an interview on Monday that Greenland should be part of the US.

“Nobody is going to fight the US militarily over the future of Greenland.”

Miller, furthermore, questioned the basis of Denmark’s territorial claim over Greenland.

Greenland was a Danish colony for hundreds of years until 1953, and now a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, with the right to seek independence under international law.

The US government recognized Denmark’s right to the whole of Greenland at the beginning of the 20th century.

What is Greenland saying?

Greenland’s prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen on Tuesday reiterated that Greenland was not for sale and that only Greenlanders could decide its future.

Both Greenland and Denmark have called for urgent talks with Washington to clear up what they described as “misunderstandings.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Monday said that a US takeover of Greenland would mean the end of the NATO military alliance.

Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Spain joined Denmark in issuing a joint statement of solidarity with the Arctic island.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn

DW News