President Donald Trump has expressed confidence that the United States would annex Greenland.
"I think that will happen," he told reporters on Thursday during a meeting in the Oval Office.
“We have to do it. We really need it for national security,” Trump told reporters as he hosted NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. “That's why NATO might have to get involved, in a way, because we really need Greenland for national security.”
Denmark and Greenland have rejected proposals to sell the territory, with the Danish government asserting its continued sovereignty over the island.
Greenland's Pro-independence Demokraatit Party (Democrats) won most of the votes in elections as results rolled in Wednesday, upsetting the ruling parties as the pro-independence party won more than 30 percent of the vote.
Trump said that the election was good for the United States. Denmark has said Greenland is not for sale.
TRT Global - Greenland voted in legislative elections that could yield a timeline for independence for the self-governing territory coveted by US President Donald Trump.
Seeking independence
Greenland, the world’s largest island, has been an autonomous territory of Denmark since 1979.
Located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, it is rich in minerals and strategically located in the Arctic.
The island — spanning more than 2 million square kilometres (800,000 square miles) — is rich in rare earth minerals crucial for high-tech industries, including nickel, cobalt and copper, in addition to its vast oil and gas potential.
A survey conducted in January showed that 85 percent of Greenland’s population opposes joining the US.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the leader of the Demokraatit, will form a new government with the also staunchly pro-independence Naleraq Party.
Demokraatit and Naleraq are in favour of independence from Denmark with Naleraq seeking a more rapid departure from Denmark.
TRT Global - Rubio says US defence commitments to Greenland justify greater control over the territory.
