Throughout President Trump’s first and second terms, he has proposed the acquisition of Greenland. During his first term, Trump first teased the idea of buying Greenland in 2019, noting it as a “large real estate deal.” Furthermore, in Trump’s second term, Vice President JD Vance visited the island on March 28, 2025. “But one way or the other, we’re going to have Greenland,” Trump said. Trump cites a need to bolster national security amid current tensions with China and Russia, simultaneously strengthening NATO.

President Trump claims that the United States needs Greenland before Russia and China take it for themselves, and therefore endangers the European continent in this new cold war. “The United States needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security. It is vital for the Golden Dome that we are building,” Trump said in a Truth Social post. It’s largely true that Greenland is 836,330 sq mi of snow and land. It is challenging to attack such a vast and inhospitable landmass, which can serve as a formidable line of defense for the North American continent.

But Greenlanders and Danish politicians are responding to Trump’s threats. The majority of Greenlanders don’t want to join the U.S and would rather be an independent nation. “We are Greenlanders. We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danish either. Greenland’s future will be decided by Greenland,” Former Greenland Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede said. In addition, according to a Berlinske and Sermitsiaq poll, 85% of Greenland residents don’t want to be a part of the U.S. It would be difficult for the U.S. to take Greenland and expect Greenlanders to assimilate quickly into Americana.

Overall, the United States acquisition of Greenland could pose some benefits for our nation as a whole, but it would be a difficult process to keep Greenlanders happy.