The minimum you must know

Greenland is a geographically beautiful ice cold northern Arctic-circle autonomous area with around fifty thousand citizens that’s currently considered part of Denmark. It’s about one-fifth the size of the United States in real land area. (On flat world maps, however, Greenland looks comparable or even larger because the type of map stretches areas closer to the poles.) Greenland has a thousand year association with Denmark and Scandinavia, as a consequence of European colonization. But the indigenous Inuit people there voted three years ago in a non-binding nationwide referendum to peacefully form a new country separate from Denmark, which Denmark and consequently Europe fully acknowledge is their right. This followed an official vote in 1985 to leave the European Economic Community. Therefore, Greenland appears poised to follow in the footsteps of countless other countries that fully decolonized from Europe. Another nationwide referendum may result in Greenland’s complete independence including from NATO.

Greenland is strategically located in the middle of the sea between the United States and Canada on one geographic side, and Russia and Europe on the other. The northern border is near Russia. The United States protects Greenland as a NATO obligation. But that past may not be the future if Greenland departs Denmark. President Trump is responding to that uncertainty by seeking to include Greenland as a U.S. territory or state.

Greenland has substantial natural resources, such as fresh ice water, and a variety of minerals, including ones useful in manufacturing. The people there are peace-loving and extraordinary. Therefore, Greenland represents an attractive acquisition for the United States of America.

There isn’t a formal peace treaty governing the northern Arctic Circle comparable to the one for Antarctica. Peace for Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Finland, Norway and Sweden have traditionally been guaranteed by the NATO alliance instead.