Donald Trump said yesterday that the idea of buying Greenland from Denmark had been seriously discussed with his administration.
The semi-autonomous territory has a host of strategic benefits, not just due to its location but also its wealth of mineral reserves.
Responding to the news, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Greenland was not for sale, and that the very idea was ‘absurd’.
“Greenland is not for sale. Greenland is not Danish. Greenland belongs to Greenland. I strongly hope that this is not meant seriously,” she said to local newspaper Sermitsiaq.
Iceland’s Prime Minister has said she hopes Trump, “isn’t serious”
Trump said that while he was having the discussions it was not an ‘immediate’ priority for his administration.
“It’s just something we’ve talked about,” the President quipped with reporters. “Denmark essentially owns it. We’re very good allies with Denmark. We’ve protected Denmark like we protect large portions of the world, so the concept came up’.
‘Essentially, it’s a large real estate deal. A lot of things can be done. It’s hurting Denmark very badly because they’re losing almost $700 million a year carrying it. So they carry it at a great loss,’ he said.
Donald Trump is due to visit Copenhagen early next month when Greenland and other parts of the docket will be discussed with Frederiksen and Prime Minister Kim Kielsen of Greenland.
