President Donald Trump has expressed his desire to buy Greenland, and hinted that he would be willing to use military or economic coercion to achieve his goal of controlling the autonomous territory of Denmark. However, the United States is not the only country with an eye on the region.
In 2018, a Chinese state-owned company bid roughly $550 million to expand two airports in Greenland, but the bid was ultimately withdrawn. Meanwhile, Russia has been reopening old Soviet military bases across the Arctic since 2015, including one located just 600 miles off the northern coast of Greenland.
Greenland’s location has made it a crucial component in the global struggle for power and influence. “Greenland is almost a kind of ground zero for how the Arctic has become more and more geopolitically and strategically significant,” said Professor Kalus Dodds of Royal Holloway, University of London. With China’s rise and its tripling of its ICBM ballistic missile arsenal, Greenland plays a vital role in America’s ballistic missile warning system due to its geography.
Furthermore, Greenland’s prime location offers a unique economic opportunity, thanks to its proximity to Arctic shipping routes. Shipping over Arctic routes saw a 37% increase between 2013 and 2023, according to the Arctic Council. China has also announced its intent to construct a “Polar Silk Road” linking China and Europe through the Arctic Ocean. As the Arctic ice flow continues to change, opening up new shipping routes, Greenland presents several lucrative opportunities.
The strategic significance of Greenland cannot be overstated, and it is likely to become a key battleground in the struggle for global power and influence.