Denmark and Greenland Officials to Meet White House amid Arctic Tensions

Officials from Denmark and Greenland are going to the White House to discuss the future of Greenland, and they say the island is not for sale, even as President Trump has made clear he wants to annex it, the report said. The article notes the dispute is part of a broader scramble for the Arctic as climate change thins the ice and makes resources more accessible.

It highlights Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago governed by a century-old treaty that allows people from many countries to settle without a visa, and describes a once-vibrant international community now facing tighter Norwegian controls. Reporters found Norway is cracking down on land sales to foreigners, stripping away foreigners’ voting rights, curtailing scientific research and claiming hundreds of miles of Svalbard’s seas.

Norway’s state secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Eivind Vad Petersson, was quoted as saying the islands had been seen as “sort of a free-for-all, and everyone who wants to can come up and do almost whatever they want,” and adding, “This is Norwegian sovereign territory.

So we’re making that a bit clearer.” The piece says the Arctic’s attractions include copper, zinc, cobalt, lithium and rare-earth elements, as well as strategic locations for tracking missiles and downloading satellite data. It reports U.S. officials have accused Chinese researchers of conducting illegal military research in Svalbard and that Russia is advancing claims with language similar to its push in Ukraine.

Key Topics

World, Greenland, Denmark, White House, Svalbard, Norway