Why Does US Really Want to Annex Greenland?
The Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS California
Though Greenland’s natural resources are considerable, US president-elect Donald Trump’s interest in buying the arctic island from Denmark likely stems from military considerations first and foremost, argues military analyst Alexei Leonkov.With the climate in Greenland warming, the US could be able to establish a chain of naval facilities there that could allow Washington to “cover” all of North Atlantic and monitor the Arctic, explains Leonkov, editor of Arsenal Otechestva (Arsenal of the Fatherland).The US already attempted to establish a naval base in Greenland, “right amid the ice,” but ended up aborting the construction of the outpost because of how troublesome it would have been to provide power and heating there, he notes.According to Leonkov, the existing US naval assets in North Atlantic region still fail to reliably track Russia’s submarine operations there, so the United States may try to fix the problem by beefing up its naval presence through expansion to Greenland.
AmericasCould the US Grab Greenland? Exploring Options From Deals to Diplomatic Rows and War16:00 GMT“Their solution comes down to maintaining permanent naval presence there, especially naval and submersible drones, that would actively search for Russian submarines,” Leonkov says, citing this as the likely reason for the US drive to acquire Greenland.Using Iceland for such purposes is out the question, he argues, both due to the island’s relatively small size and because of all the risks related to volcanic activity.
