By: Garbielle Oudkerk
There has been a recent interest in the sovereign country of Greenland, specifically by current U.S. President Donald J Trump, that has sparked controversy pertaining to the Trump administration’s ideals and motives with the rest of the world.
“The U.S. will go as far as we have to go to get control of Greenland,” said Trump as reported by ABC News in earlier comments on March 27, 2025.
In a Truth Social post made by President Trump on Jan. 14, he goes into more detail.
“The United States needs Greenland for the purpose of national security. If we don’t, Russia or China will, and that’s not going to happen!”
Press Secretary Karoline Levit made comments with reporters on Jan. 12, saying, “Let’s not forget it would not just be in the best interest of the United States, but perhaps it would be in the best interest of Greenland as well.”
Trump also mentioned that not only is Greenland needed for national security reasons, but also for its “strategic location in mineral deposits,” reported by Reuters.
It has been an ongoing threat, creating a diplomatic crisis with the NATO allies.
The Danish government has since denied Trump’s pursuits and threats with the potential purchase of Greenland, including members making comments of their own, strongly expressing how they feel about the matter.
In January, Danish politician Anders Visitsen, a sitting member of the European parliament, told Trump to “F*** off” in response at a meeting with the parliament in Strasbourg, France, on Jan. 22.
Many Americans believe that the Trump administration’s pursuits in foreign policy, especially regarding Greenland, have not been in the interest of the American people.
According to a poll statistic done by CNN, 75% of Americans oppose the U.S. attempting to take control of Greenland.
According to a study by the Pew Research Center between Jan. 20 and Jan. 26 this year, 82% of Democrats and democratic leaning independents oppose the U.S. taking over Greenland.
On the other hand, 41% of Republicans and Republican-led independents favor the takeover, their side being significantly more divided, 33% opposing, with the rest unbiased.
But it’s not only the Americans who oppose the taking of Greenland.
The citizens of Greenland have shown their own disapproval of the Trump administration in various ways.
Greenland’s Prime Minister, Múte Egede, said in an interview with Fox News that Greenland will maintain a “strong alliance” and partnership with Western countries, including the U.S. With that being said, he emphasizes the fact that Greenland still has the right to be a sovereign nation.
“We want to be Greenlanders. We don’t want to be Americans. We don’t want to be Danish.” We only want to be Greenlandic people,” said business owner Lila Sangreen in an interview with NPR co-host Juana Summers, who traveled to Greenland earlier this month to interview citizens.
“That notion was repeated over and over again in our conversations with local residents. A recent poll from Danish and Greenland news outlets found that 85% of Green lenders don’t want to be part of the United States,” said Summers.
“We wanna be independent, so we’re not for sale,” said Karen Cortsen, a nail salon business owner in Greenland. “Something like European or American —we’re not used to it because we are very calm, so we are not interested.”
Summers also speaks with Jorgensen Boassan, a Greenlandic fan of President Trump, in which he says, “I think the U.S. is more than welcome to have more bases and have a military to protect the U.S. and Greenland from Russia and China, so I have no trouble with that.”
However, that view is not completely uncommon among both American Trump supporters and the other percentage of people in Greenland, who support the taking of Greenland, since the Trump administration’s claims were focused on the alleged protection of Greenland from Russia and China. But there are still people who find a common ground between both sides, making arguments for both the connection with the United States and the sovereignty of Greenland.
“We met Mala Johnson at the streetwear company he owns in Nuuk. And hear the welcoming of international influences is again clear, his company is called Bolt Lamar, named for the famous American sprinter Usain Bolt, and the American musician Kendrick Lamar. What do you hope for in the future of your country?” Summer asks.
“To meet the optimal solution would be if we become an independent country, but with partnerships. If we should do this the right way, we should always have a relationship with Denmark, as we share a history. It’s like —almost like family.”
And when Summers asks about a potential future relationship with the U.S., Johnsen responds by saying, “ I think the most important thing here is to respect every different culture and the people in that culture and not to colonize the place all over again.”
There have been more satirical forms of protests from the people in Greenland, showing their opposition to the Trump administration.
Popular Danish radio station “DR P3” posted a satirical advertisement of Greenland on their Instagram page targeted towards President Trump.
Throughout the video features content creator and influencer Adnan Al-Adhani and other Greenlanders. They ended the video by saying “Trump deserved the Nobel Peace Prize,” sarcastically referring to the fact that Trump and his administration pushed for him to receive the award, and it was given to someone else.
“Yes, Mr. President, you are a true peace maker. Because your threats have actually brought Denmark and Greenland closer together,” Al-Adhani continues.
In the video, they point out how the Danes and Greenlanders have not had the best relationship, but because of Donald Trump’s pursuit of Greenland, the two groups have been able to come together. As the video continued, Al-Adhani and the Greenlanders continued to make sarcastic, humorous remarks, even mentioning the ICE raids. “It’s like being with someone who lies— cheats—and has zero morals.” They brought out a person dressed as President Trump’s wife, Melania Trump, saying, “Melania knows what we’re talking about.”
As of Feb. 24, the video has accumulated over 28.4 million views and 2.4 million likes, with comments from people and verified creators commenting “From America we love you,” “We support you,” and “Divided by colonialism united by Trump.”
ABC News Australia reports that tens of thousands of people rallied together in Greenland on Jan. 20, wearing red caps saying, “Make America Go Away,” and “Already Great,” direct parodies of the “Make America Great Again” signature caps.
Reuters spoke with a Greenland shop co-owner, Michael, who said their store is the one that sold the caps.
“We only made one hundred to begin with,” said Principal Owner Jasper Rabe Tonessen. Tonessen created another slogan for the caps, “Nu det NUUK”, after the first caps’ growth in popularity. A combination of the Danish term “Nu det nok” meaning “Now is enough”, and NUUK, the capital of Greenland. “We just had enough.”