At The American Conservative, Congressman Warren Davidson, founder of the Greenland Caucus, applauds President Trump’s efforts to exert American influence in Greenland, writing:
Last year, I founded the Greenland Caucus (GreenlandCaucus.org). Almost immediately we had members from the House and Senate interested in advancing a closer relationship with Greenland. With President Donald Trump’s newly announced “framework of a future deal” on Arctic cooperation, the question isn’t whether we should strengthen our defense integration with Greenland, but rather how this can be accomplished.
President Trump’s provocative rhetoric has had its intended effect of focusing both the American people and our international partners on the importance of a U.S.–Greenland agreement. Partisan critics portray America’s interest in Greenland as some passing fancy, or vanity project, but that is simply not true. The United States’ interest in Greenland predates President Trump and will outlast his presidency because it is an important and enduring strategic priority.
After successfully acquiring Alaska from Russia, Secretary of State William Seward (1861–1869) sought to acquire Greenland from Denmark. Between 1886 and 1909 explorers like Robert Peary explored and charted Greenland, seeking to make it part of the United States. In the early 1900s interest in Greenland was concurrent with acquiring the Danish West Indies, now known as the Virgin Islands, which we acquired in 1917. In 1946, President Harry Truman offered to acquire Greenland.
Despite Denmark’s refusal to sell, the U.S. built bases there throughout the Second World War and the Cold War. Securing shipping lanes was essential to winning the Second World War and to preserving security ever since. Established in 1951, the Pituffik Space Base recognizes Greenland’s geographic importance for ballistic missile early detection, satellite communication, and Arctic surveillance. Political hacks who attack President Trump for his interest in Greenland ignore the century-plus bipartisan consensus that Greenland is indispensable to North American defense and U.S. strategic deterrence.
The 1951 Defense of Greenland Agreement already grants the United States broad, indefinite military rights without a fixed expiration date, often described as granting “sweeping” or “total” access in perpetuity for defense needs. As we begin building the missile defense capability long envisioned, first as “Star Wars” and now as the Golden Dome, we now need an elaborate array of installations—and we need a stronger relationship with Greenland as well. Recognizing the strategic significance, President Trump has pressed for something more comprehensive.
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