A Top Trump Aide Escalates Threats to Take Over the Arctic Territory

A key figure from Donald Trump's senior advisors has ramped up the pressure on Denmark by questioning Denmark's sovereign claim to Greenland.

Force Deemed Unnecessary

The president’s deputy chief of staff, also claimed the use of armed force would not be necessary to assume control of the Arctic territory because “nobody is going to fight the United States in combat over the fate of Greenland”.

“The idea of military action against Greenland? Its population numbers just a population of 30,000 people,” Miller inaccurately claimed, despite the actual figure being closer to 57,000.

He also suggested that Copenhagen lacks a valid claim to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and remains part of the Danish kingdom.

Escalating Diplomatic Strains

Miller’s comments follow a period of increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the US president’s renewed calls to purchase Greenland.

The Danish foreign policy committee has convened an extraordinary meeting to examine the bilateral ties with the United States.

In his interview, Miller asserted that control over Greenland could be achieved without armed conflict due to its limited number of residents.

Challenging Copenhagen's Rule

“The core issue is on what grounds does Denmark have to exercise sovereignty over Greenland? What legal foundation of their territorial claim?” Miller questioned.

He added: “As the leading power within the power of NATO. For the US to secure the Arctic region to defend NATO, obviously Greenland should be part of the US.”

There was, he said “no requirement to even think or talk about” a armed takeover in Greenland, reiterating: “No country would wage war against the US militarily.”

Global Responses

His comments came after Trump said over the weekend, following other foreign policy actions, that the US desired the territory “urgently”.

Denmark's leader, Mette Frederiksen, responded by warning that an American aggression against a NATO ally would mean the collapse of the military alliance and “post-Second World War security”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a forceful rebuke, calling on the US president to abandon his “fantasies about annexation” and accused the US of being “wholly inappropriate”.

Background and Present Position

The aide's assertions came after his wife, podcaster Katie Miller, shared a digital image of Greenland draped in a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

When questioned on the social media post, he laughed and said: “This has represented the official stance of the US government since the start of this presidency... Donald Trump has been very clear about that.”

Greenland remained a colony until 1953, when it became part of the kingdom of Denmark. The US has had a strategic installation there, important for its ballistic missile early warning system.

Recently, there has been increasing sentiment for Greenlandic independence, especially following revelations about Denmark’s treatment of the local population.

But amid the prospect of acquisition talk, Greenland in March formed a new coalition government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its founding document declaring: “We are the rightful owners of Greenland.”