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A key figure from Donald Trump's senior advisors has increased tensions on Denmark by questioning Denmark's sovereign claim to Greenland.

Force Deemed Unnecessary

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically military intervention would not be required to take over the northern landmass because “no nation would engage the United States in combat over the future of Greenland”.

“The idea of military action against Greenland? Greenland has 30,000 inhabitants people,” Miller inaccurately claimed, the correct number being closer to 57,000.

Miller further proposed that Denmark does not have a legitimate right to the territory, which is a one-time colonial possession and remains part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Escalating Diplomatic Strains

These remarks follow a period of increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the US president’s renewed calls to annex Greenland.

A key parliamentary committee in Denmark has convened an extraordinary meeting to discuss the kingdom’s relationship with the United States.

In his interview, Miller asserted that dominion of the island could be achieved without military intervention due to its limited number of residents.

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The core issue is on what grounds does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What legal foundation of their territorial claim?” he asked.

He added: “The US is the dominant force in NATO. For the US to protect Arctic interests to safeguard the alliance, obviously Greenland should be part of the US.”

He stated there was “no requirement to even think or talk about” a armed takeover in Greenland, adding: “Nobody is going to fight the US militarily.”

International Reactions

His comments followed Trump said over the weekend, fresh from events in Venezuela, that the US desired the territory “very badly”.

The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, responded by saying that an American aggression against a NATO ally would mean the collapse of the military alliance and “post-Second World War security”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, issued a forceful rebuke, calling on the US president to give up his “fantasies about annexation” and labeled American rhetoric of being “completely and utterly unacceptable”.

Background and Present Position

The aide's assertions were preceded by his wife, podcaster Katie Miller, shared a map on social media of Greenland draped in a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

Asked about the online image, he responded by stating: “This has represented the formal position of the US government from the beginning of this administration... The president has been explicit about that.”

The territory remained a colony until 1953, when it was integrated of the kingdom of Denmark. The US has had a strategic installation there, important for its national missile defense network.

Recently, there has been growing support for self-rule, especially following disclosures about historical policies of the local population.

However, facing the spectre of Trump’s threat, Greenland in March formed a new coalition government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its founding document declaring: “Greenland belongs to us.”