Richard Grenell, U.S. envoy for special missions, told Newsmax on Wednesday that President Donald Trump has made Greenland a strategic negotiating priority.
He said that the president's push has kept the Arctic territory from drifting toward Beijing or Moscow amid intensifying competition over security and minerals.
On "Rob Schmitt Tonight," Grenell, former U.S. ambassador to Germany, responded to a host question that cited The New York Times as reporting the United States was poised to gain control over portions of Greenland, a semiautonomous territory belonging to Denmark, and access to its minerals.
Schmitt asked whether Trump had sought "full title" as an opening bid, "asked for the moon," then aimed to settle for terms he could accept.
"President Trump is an amazing negotiator," Grenell said, adding that he views Europe as "a great place to vacation" but "a terrible place to do business."
Grenell then linked Greenland to NATO burden-sharing and Arctic competition with Russia and China.
He said prior presidents had spoken about Greenland's strategic value and the need for a stronger partnership, but none had delivered results.
Grenell said Trump's approach has been to place the territory at the center of negotiations rather than treating it as a long-term aspiration.
He framed the stakes as urgent, saying strategists have warned for decades that the United States needs a stronger partnership with Greenland "to secure our future" because "Russia and China are right there."
"Greenland is either going to go to Russia, China, or the United States," Grenell said, adding that Trump has "made it the core of his negotiations."
Trump briefly outlined a future NATO deal involving Greenland, mentioning U.S. and European access to mineral rights and collaboration on the Golden Dome missile defense system.
"They're going to be involved in the Golden Dome, and they're going to be involved in mineral rights, and so are we," Trump told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
When asked how long the deal would last, Trump said, "Forever."
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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