The U.S. Plan for Greenland is Worse Than You Think

Paul J. Warburg 27 min

The real justification for the United States controlling Greenland is access to the rare earth metals, not merely Greenland's position. Instead of focusing on the actions that these countries might or might not take in the future, you can focus on the actions that they are actually taking today.

  • Donald Trump
  • Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Key points

  • 0:38

    The United States has made clear statements of intent about what they want to do with Greenland.

  • 0:38

    The administration has not ruled out the use of military force against Greenland.

  • 1:50

    Greenland and Venezuela are both resource-rich countries with strategic resources largely untapped.

  • 1:50

    The United States argues that Russia and China would take Greenland if they do not act first.

  • 3:06

    Both countries are considered easy targets due to weak military power or low population density.

  • 8:43

    The primary strategic reason for U.S. interest is access to rare earth metals found in Greenland.

  • 12:00

    The United States follows a pattern of using aggressive rhetoric to force concessions without actual invasion.

  • 12:00

    Invading Greenland would be counterproductive as it could damage NATO alliances and U.S. security.

  • 25:23

    The United States possesses sufficient rare earth metals domestically to reduce reliance on Greenland.

Who and where

People · 2

  • Drawing of Donald Trump

    Donald Trump 4

    President of the United States (2017–2021; since 2025)

    Photo 1

  • Drawing of Volodymyr Zelenskyy

    Volodymyr Zelenskyy 2

    President of Ukraine since 2019

    Photo 2

1. Photo: Daniel Torok, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons · Wikidata · redrawn in our house style (Donald Trump)

2. Photo: Press Service of the President of Ukraine, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Wikidata · redrawn in our house style (Volodymyr Zelenskyy)

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