Greenland
Pound of flesh
Rafia Zakaria
The writer is an attorney teaching constitutional law and political philosophy.
ONE would think that everyone in the world knows that nothing is free. Every favour granted, every kindness bestowed has its cost — sometimes the payment is demanded immediately, and at other times, decades later. Europe it appears is only learning the truth of this in these feverish days of the Trump administration. Recently, the Americans carted off Nicolás Maduro and his wife from Caracas to a jailhouse in America. Careful statements came from Europe so as not to anger the American president.
It was the words that came after that were even more unnerving to the watching Europeans. No sooner had images of a handcuffed Maduro appeared on TV screens than the Trump administration officials began to assert that they would take over Greenland next. Post-Maduro, one of the first to make the claim was Stephen Miller — Trump’s Goebbels-esque immigration czar. Then it was Trump himself and also Secretary of State Marco Rubio who said that the US would not militarily take over Greenland but simply buy the country. Controlling Greenland, all three seemed to agree, was necessary for America’s security.
If Venezuela’s takeover had instigated panic attacks in Europe, these overt announcements of US plans brought on a nervous breakdown. The major European countries issued a statement against the claims to Greenland being made across the pond. At the centre of the circle was Denmark, which had laid claim to Greenland 300 years ago and still wants to hold on to it even though Greenlanders themselves do not seem to want it to do so.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has since had increasingly testy exchanges with President Donald Trump. In her words, if the US were to ‘get’ Greenland it would be the end of the international world order.
The cuddly US that indulged Europe’s domestic spending has gone.
The reality is more complex and the source of Danish fretting over every word the US says about Greenland is ironically an international treaty or a series of treaties themselves. The first dates to 1941. At that time, the Danish ambassador who had been cut off from Copenhagen owing to the Nazi takeover of Denmark signed a defence agreement on behalf of Denmark and Greenland with the then US administration.
The motivation behind this was that the Nazis could have used Greenland as a route to North America and thus it made sense for the US to be able to set up military bases there. Another treaty is from 1951 when the US looking to bolster its Cold War defences against the Soviet Union got permission to set up any number of military bases in Greenland if it wanted to.
The US is a military behemoth with a defence budget of over $900 billion. Even as Denmark’s PM dramatically decries US claims on Greenland it seems questionable whether the rest of Europe will forsake the US as a military ally over Greenland. The promise of American military support has enabled Europe to keep up a lifestyle it could not afford had European countries been required to spend gobs of money fending off a threat from the then Soviet Union. The social welfare state, free schools and healthcare for citizens, for instance, would not have been possible if military spending had not been defrayed by Nato.
The cuddly US that never raised a finger at Europe’s indulgent domestic spending is now gone. In its place is a nasty America looking to get paid for past favours. Many in Washington predict that the US plan
to thwart China is to simply get a tighter grip on South and Central America as well as most of the rest of the Western Hemisphere. Greenland, sitting on enormous mineral deposits, is part of America’s new security strategy. This means that even if there is no dramatic or overt capture of Greenland, it is likely that a takeover will take place quietly.
Beyond Venezuela, the US also has its eyes on the area known as the ‘lithium triangle’ constituting Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. The Argentinian prime minister has already sung Trump’s praises. Given Maduro’s fate, his regional counterparts know they better follow suit. America is intent on making sure it has enough oil, precious metals and other components required for technological advancements and it’s not afraid to use its military to make sure it gets just that.
Greenland with its 57,000 inhabitants is likely about to exchange the hegemony of one state for another’s. The Trump administration sees no reason why an icy hinterland of buried treasure should not be theirs. Europe, which had counted on the US remaining a friend forever, is in for a dark and disappointing time ahead. The US wants what it wants and it is Europe’s turn to realise this.
Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2026
Rafia Zakaria is an attorney and human rights activist. She is a columnist for DAWN Pakistan and a regular contributor for Al Jazeera America, Dissent, Guernica and many other publications.
She is the author of The Upstairs Wife: An Intimate History of Pakistan (Beacon Press 2015). She tweets @rafiazakaria
Trump’s Greenland talk brings opportunity, unease for business
Greenland’s business community is split on the impact of Donald Trump’s renewed interest in the Arctic island.
While some see commercial opportunity, others say harsh rhetoric about taking control of the territory is dampening near-term activity.
The revived talk has sparked a new rush by US officials to identify business deals and other ways to deepen ties with Greenland, according to people familiar with the matter. For now, discussions are focused on mining projects, hydroelectric power and other ventures that could expand the US economic footprint on the island.
“Greenland is now in the position to decide its future, to build up its economic independence,” Eldur Olafsson, founder and chief executive officer of Amaroq Ltd, told Bloomberg Television on Thursday. “There is opportunity in this.”
The Toronto-based company operates a newly opened gold mine in Greenland and holds the largest portfolio of mineral exploration licenses in the territory. Last year, Amaroq attracted strong demand from investors on both sides of the Atlantic in an oversubscribed funding round and has since seen interest from state-backed agencies in the US and Europe.
The US president has “really put Greenland on the map” since he first touted the idea of buying the island in 2019, Olafsson said. “People saw there are resources there.”
Trump “doesn’t want to lose time to get something done,” Olafsson said. “That overall is a good thing, because Greenland needs investment.”
The island’s public finances are under mounting pressure and its fiscal position suffered a “surprisingly sharp deterioration” last year, according to an analysis published this week by Denmark’s central bank. It underscores the urgency of discovering new sources of growth as Greenland seeks greater economic self-reliance.
The Arctic island is betting on its mining sector to help diversify the economy and lay the groundwork for future independence from Denmark. Despite Greenland’s vast untapped reserves, commercial extraction remains limited so far. Harsh operating conditions, high production costs and relatively low mineral concentrations have deterred large-scale development.
To bridge that gap, support from other governments will likely be needed. The US and other nations could help projects get off the ground through purchase commitments, price floors, grants or even equity stakes.
Elsewhere in Greenland’s business community, reactions are more mixed.
“Some people do see it as an opportunity to expand into new markets in the US,” Mads Qvist Frederiksen, executive director of the Arctic Economic Council, told Bloomberg Radio. While Greenlanders are unlikely to agree to a sale, he said, companies remain open to doing business.
For now, however, the rhetoric around buying Greenland or taking it by force is proving counterproductive.
“Everything is put on hold at the moment,” Frederiksen said, with companies postponing decisions until there is more clarity about Greenland’s future. “We have to turn off this fire that is on at the moment.”
(By Sanne Wass)
Greenland miner that surged 80% says rare earth supply in focus
An Australian miner with a rare earth project in Greenland, the Danish territory attracting the interest of the Trump administration, said resource security is increasingly driving prices.
“Supply chains for critical minerals like rare earths are now not just priced based on cost, but more importantly on security of supply,” Energy Transition Minerals Ltd.’s managing director, Daniel Mamadou, said on Bloomberg Television.
“What the West is realizing, and taking steps towards now, is the fact that tough projects need to be funded,” Mamadou said, adding that the company has continued to receive interest from global investors including in Europe and China.
Energy Transition has surged nearly 80% this year in Sydney as the US mulls seeking control of Greenland. President Donald Trump has said he won’t rule out the use of military force to acquire the island, which is a self-ruling territory of Denmark.
Trump has mused about making Greenland part of the US since his first term, but has ramped up the rhetoric after launching a military operation last week to oust Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
Greenland has sizable natural resources including rare earths – the strategic minerals that have been a focal point of trade talks between China and the US – but commercial extraction in the island remains limited so far.
Energy Transition is developing a flagship rare earth project at Kvanefjeld in southern Greenland, which will consist of a mine, a concentrator and refinery. The company said last month that legal proceedings related to the grant of an exploitation license are still ongoing.
(By Annie Lee and Haslinda Amin)
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