Republicans Move Ahead With Trump's Bold Plan To Buy Greenland With Draft Bill

Washington: Donald Trump , who would be United States' 47th President next week, recent statements of merging Greenland with US or buying the island has taken a serious and official turn. With just a few days left for Trump's inauguration, the Republicans have drafted a bill and are building support for it in the House of Representatives.

The bill has been named as “Make Greenland Great Again Act” and Republican Congressman Andy Ogles and Congresswoman Diana Harshbarger have been given the responsibility to garner support for it.

The bill has so far garnered 10 co-sponsors. If passed, this bill will give power to President-elect Donald Trump to enter into negotiations with Denmark to finally buy the island.

The draft bill says, " Congress hereby authorises the President to seek to enter into negotiations with the Kingdom of Denmark to secure the acquisition of Greenland by the United States," the bill's draft says.

"Not later than 5 calendar days after reaching an agreement with the Kingdom of Denmark relating to the acquisition of Greenland by the United States, the President shall transmit to the appropriate congressional committees the agreement, including all related materials and annexes," it adds.

Who controls Greenland?

Greenland has been controlled by Denmark for centuries, previously as a colony and now as a semi-sovereign territory under the Danish realm.

It is subject to the Danish constitution, meaning any change to its legal status would require a constitutional amendment.

Prime Minister Mute Egede, who has stepped up a push for independence, has repeatedly said the island is not for sale and that it is up to its people to decide their future.

Trump's push for buying Greenland?

Donald Trump has sparked diplomatic controversy by suggesting the US needs to acquire Greenland for reasons of “national security” and refusing to definitively rule out using military force to do so.

Trump’s interest in Greenland is not new. He first expressed interest in the territory in 2019, but it never developed into any action.

Whether or not Trump has actual plans this time around to advance any attempt in Washington to own Greenland is far from clear. But given the incoming president’s repeated statements and invocation of national security, it’s worth considering what strategic value Greenland might actually have from the perspective of the US’s geopolitical priorities.

As a scholar of geopolitics tactics involving natural resources and the Arctic, I believe Greenland’s value from an international political perspective can be viewed in terms of four fundamental areas: minerals, military presence, Arctic geopolitics and the territory’s potential independence.

With inputs from agencies