Putin: One should take Trump's plans for Greenland seriously, they have deep historical roots

US plans to annex Greenland have existed for a long time and should not be considered extravagant, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

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Flag of Greenland

"We are talking about serious American plans regarding Greenland. These plans have deep historical roots," the Russian leader said.

Putin added that US claims to Greenland, as well as to Iceland, first emerged in the 1860s but failed to gain support in Congress. US President Donald Trump's plans "should not be considered extravagant," as they are driven by an escalation in geopolitical competition, the Russian president believes.

"At first glance, this may surprise some, but it is deeply mistaken to think that these are just extravagant discussions within the American administration. Not at all," the head of state said speaking at the plenary session of the International Arctic Forum 'The Arctic – Territory of Dialogue.'

He provided a historical overview, listing several US attempts to take control of Greenland.

According to Putin, such plans first emerged in the 1860s when the United States considered annexing Greenland and Iceland.

• In 1867, the US purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million (over 11 million rubles at the time). Putin noted that this acquisition was mocked in the US – Alaska was called "Andrew Johnson’s polar bear garden," referring to the then-president. Against this backdrop, the idea of acquiring Greenland did not gain support.
• In 1910, a deal was prepared for a territorial exchange between the US, Germany, and Denmark, but it fell through.
• During World War II, the United States established military bases on the island to protect it from the Germans and later offered to buy Greenland from Denmark.

Putin believes that the US will continue to systematically pursue its geostrategic, military-political, and economic interests in the Arctic.

He added that while the Greenland issue does not concern Russia directly, Moscow is concerned that NATO countries increasingly refer to the High North as a potential conflict zone.

US President Donald Trump justified his intention to acquire Greenland by stating that the USA needed the island for "national and even international security," "for the security of the entire world." He expressed confidence that Washington would "one way or another" take control of the island and promised to ensure Greenland’s security and elevate it "to heights it has never even dreamed of."

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen responded to Trump's offer by stating that the island was not for sale. Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede made similar statements, but in the March elections, his party finished third. The first and second places were taken by pro-independence parties, with the left-wing Naleraq party – which came in second – supporting a defense agreement with the US.

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Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. The citizens of all territories are full citizens of Denmark. Greenland is one of the Overseas Countries and Territories of the European Union and is part of the Council of Europe. The capital and largest city of Greenland is Nuuk. Greenland lies between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. It is the world's largest island, and is the location of the northernmost point of land in the world—Kaffeklubben Island off the northern coast is the world's northernmost undisputed point of land; Cape Morris Jesup on the mainland was thought to be so until the 1960s. Economically, Greenland is heavily reliant on aid from Denmark, amounting to nearly half of the territory's total public revenue.