Trump tells Davos leaders US should acquire Greenland for national security
President Donald J. Trump wants Greenland. Full title, ownership papers, and no, he’s not interested in a lease right now. “It’s the United States alone that can protect this giant mass of land, this giant piece of ice,” Trump said in his speech to the ritzy World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday, Jan. 21.
“I’m seeking immediate negotiations to once again to discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States,” he told the leaders assembled at Davos. “It’s a small ask,” he quipped.
Don’t be shocked by Trump’s tactics. There’s smart thinking behind Trump’s bid for Greenland. The post-1945 world order shunned boundary changes. Trump sees it differently. “This enormous, unsecured island is actually part of North America,” Trump said. The U.S. hasn’t done a major land deal since Spanish-American War of 1898, and the last purchase was the Marshall Islands in 1947.
“I won’t use force,” Trump assured the audience. Of course not. Trump won’t stoop to the illegal seizure tactics of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He’s not going to steal Greenland. The last thing he wants is paratroopers in Arctic gear dropping into Greenland.
TRUMP SAYS HE WILL NOT USE MILITARY FORCE TO ACQUIRE GREENLAND
No doubt swinging the acquisition of Greenland for the USA would be the No. 1 real estate deal of Trump’s career. However, Trump’s primary motive, wisely, is national security. The territory of Greenland is a genuine, urgent concern. “Those missiles would be flying right over the center of that piece of ice,” he said, adding that U.S. ownership is vital to “keep our very energetic and dangerous potential enemies at bay.”
On strategic grounds Trump is right. Russia’s formidable new Yasen-class nuclear submarines, based on the Kola peninsula, can launch Kalibr and Oniks missiles, and the new hypersonic Zirkon missile. Russian bombers and anti-submarine planes are active – just ask the Norwegians, who intercepted Russian planes yet again on Jan. 6. Chinese ships and submarines are prowling around, too.
You can just imagine the scary briefing charts Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg and others are showing Trump as they lay out the architecture for Golden Dome.
The buyer is “highly motivated,” as the real estate agents say.
So here comes the art of the deal. At Davos, Trump unleashed every real estate tactic from threats to pleas to scoffing at the value of this “big, beautiful piece of ice.”
As you’d expect when preparing for negotiations, Trump proceeded to run down the commercial value of Greenland’s critical mineral resources. He called Greenland “a piece of ice, cold and poorly located.” Trump also criticized the current owner, Denmark, for failing to invest and maintain the place. According to Trump, Denmark pledged an additional $200 million for Greenland’s defenses back in 2019 but didn’t deliver.
All those are classic real estate tactics.
NATO CHIEF PRAISES TRUMP AT DAVOS, SAYS HE FORCED EUROPE TO ‘STEP UP’ ON DEFENSE
Then there was the emotional appeal. After decades of security presence in Europe, “we’ve never gotten anything” from NATO, Trump said. “All we’re asking for is to get Greenland, including right, title and ownership,” Trump whined. Switching gears, he pointed out that a U.S. takeover would be a good deal for NATO. U.S. ownership of Greenland “would greatly enhance the security of the entire alliance,” Trump offered.
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No doubt swinging the acquisition of Greenland for the USA would be the No. 1 real estate deal of Trump’s career. However, Trump’s primary motive, wisely, is national security. The territory of Greenland is a genuine, urgent concern.
To be sure, he loves the history. Trump described how the U.S. saved Greenland from Nazi Germany (which is true). Then the U.S. Army Air Forces ran ferry routes to England for B-17 bombers, P-38 Lightning fighters, C-47 cargo transports and many other warplanes via airfields on Greenland. Trump is sorry Democrat President Harry S. Truman gave it back after World War II.
Yet this is no imperialist or mercantilist grab. Trump does not want to make money off Greenland; on the contrary, he wants to spend it. On Golden Dome. And all the P-8 anti-submarine warfare planes and other assets to defend Greenland.
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NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who was in the audience, has a major task ahead. Trump likes Rutte and called him “great” at Davos. Rutte, who was prime minister of the Netherlands, now has to find a way to give Trump a stake in Greenland. It may take a treaty, a joint venture, a defense compact, or a flag-planting real estate deal, but there’s no going back. Trump at Davos made clear that his continued enthusiasm for Ukraine and NATO depends on securing legal access to Greenland in order to improve U.S. defenses.
Let the negotiations begin.
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