Representative Randy Fine (R-Fla.) introduced the “Greenland Annexation and Statehood Act” on Monday, a bill that would authorize President Trump to negotiate with Denmark to annex Greenland and ultimately admit it as the 51st state, according to a press release from his office.
The legislation cites Greenland’s strategic Arctic position, with Fine arguing, “Greenland is not a distant outpost we can afford to ignore—it is a vital national security asset… Whoever controls Greenland controls key Arctic shipping lanes and the security architecture protecting the United States.” He added, “America cannot leave that future in the hands of regimes that despise our values and seek to undermine our security.”
The White House confirmed the priority, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt stating, “He said that he wants to see the United States acquire Greenland because he feels if we do not, then it will eventually be acquired or even perhaps hostilely taken over by either China or Russia.” The move faces stark opposition, however, as Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) warned on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that U.S. action to acquire Greenland by force “would be the end of NATO.”