Stephen Miller Escalates Assertions Regarding the Acquisition of the Arctic Territory

A key figure from Donald Trump's top aides has ramped up the pressure on the Danish government by challenging Denmark's sovereign claim to Greenland.

Military Intervention Dismissed

The president’s deputy chief of staff, stated emphatically military intervention would not be necessary to assume control of the northern landmass because “nobody is going to fight the United States in combat over the fate of Greenland”.

“What do you mean military action against Greenland? Greenland has 30,000 inhabitants people,” he incorrectly stated, the correct number being closer to 57,000.

Miller further proposed that Copenhagen lacks a legitimate right to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and continues as a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Escalating Diplomatic Strains

Miller’s comments follow a period of increasing friction between the US and Denmark after the US president’s renewed calls to annex Greenland.

The Danish foreign policy committee has called an emergency session to examine the kingdom’s relationship with the United States.

Speaking to media, Miller told CNN that control over Greenland could be gained without armed conflict due to its limited number of residents.

Challenging Copenhagen's Rule

“The real question is on what grounds does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What legal foundation of their territorial claim?” he asked.

He added: “The US is the power of NATO. For the US to protect Arctic interests to safeguard the alliance, obviously Greenland should be part of the US.”

There was, he said “no need to even consider or discuss” a armed takeover in Greenland, reiterating: “No country would wage war against the US over this issue.”

Global Responses

His comments came after Trump remarked recently, fresh from events in Venezuela, that the US desired the territory “very badly”.

Denmark's leader, Mette Frederiksen, responded by warning that an attack by the US a NATO ally would mean the end of the defensive pact and “the postwar security order”.

The island's own leader, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a strong statement, urging Trump to abandon his “fantasies about annexation” and accused the US of being “wholly inappropriate”.

Background and Present Position

The aide's assertions came after his wife, a conservative commentator, posted a digital image of Greenland under a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

Asked about the online image, he responded by stating: “This has represented the formal position of the US government from the beginning of this administration... Donald Trump has been very clear about that.”

Greenland remained a colony until 1953, when it became part of the Danish realm. The US maintains a strategic installation there, important for its national missile defense network.

In recent years, there has been increasing sentiment for self-rule, especially following disclosures about Denmark’s treatment of Greenlandic people.

But amid the prospect of acquisition talk, Greenland in March formed a new unity government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its founding document declaring: “We are the rightful owners of Greenland.”