GREENLAND 51ST STATE

Donald Trump has expressed serious intent to acquire Greenland as the 51st state of the United States. He has suggested the use of financial, diplomatic, economic, and even military pressure to achieve this.

Greenland officials have also been receptive: “Greenland wants independence. Every poll shows it,” said Mikkel Runge Olsen, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies. “But Greenland cannot afford to keep the Greenlandic welfare state going without a significant infusion of cash from elsewhere.”

Combining the dependence on outside powers for economic and physical security, Greenland becoming the 51st state is a serious possibility in the medium-term, despite the dismissive attitude signalled by the Danish government.