A recent poll reveals that 85% of Greenland’s residents are against the idea of their island becoming part of the United States, following President Donald Trump’s renewed interest in acquiring the Arctic territory. The survey, conducted by Verian for the Danish newspaper Berlingske and Greenland’s Sermitsiaq, indicates that only 6% support joining the U.S., while 9% remain undecided.
President Trump has emphasized Greenland’s strategic importance to U.S. security and has suggested that Denmark should relinquish control of the island. In response to these assertions, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has underscored the need for European unity and has announced a significant investment of 14.6 billion Danish kroner (approximately $2.05 billion) to bolster Denmark’s military presence in the Arctic. This investment aims to enhance surveillance and sovereignty in Greenland and the Faroe Islands, including the addition of new naval vessels and drones.
Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory with a population of around 57,000, has maintained that it is not for sale. Prime Minister Mute Egede has reiterated that any decision regarding Greenland’s future rests with its people. The island has had self-governing autonomy since 2009, including the right to declare independence through a referendum.
The U.S. currently maintains a permanent presence at the Pituffik Space Base in northwest Greenland, a strategic location for its ballistic missile early-warning system. Despite this, the recent poll indicates that the vast majority of Greenlanders prefer to remain within the Danish realm rather than becoming part of the United States.
