President Donald Trump’s ambition to acquire Greenland could cost American taxpayers $700 billion, according to three people familiar with an internal estimate prepared by scholars and former U.S. officials.
The figure-larger than half the annual Defense Department budget-has surfaced as Secretary of State Marco Rubio prepares a formal purchase proposal under White House orders, even though Greenland’s government insists the island is “not for sale.”
At a Glance
- The projected purchase price for Greenland ranges from $500 billion to $700 billion.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been directed to deliver a purchase plan within weeks.
- Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt says residents “do not want to be owned … by the United States.”
- Why it matters: A transaction-or coercion-could redraw Arctic alliances and reshape U.S. defense spending.
The Price Tag
The $700 billion estimate was developed during internal administration talks about Trump’s desire for a strategic Arctic foothold against Russia and China. The lower bound of the assessment is $500 billion, still dwarfing recent U.S. territorial purchases such as the 1917 Virgin Islands acquisition from Denmark for $25 million in gold.
Sources told News Of Losangeles that the eye-watering sum reflects Greenland’s vast size-836,000 square miles-and its emerging importance as climate change opens new shipping lanes and exposes untapped deposits of rare-earth minerals.
“One Way or the Other”
Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Trump repeated his determination: “One way or the other, we’re going to have Greenland.”
The comment came hours before Rubio and Vice President JD Vance hosted Danish and Greenlandic delegations in Washington. The closed-door session follows last week’s National Security Council talks and is aimed at clarifying U.S. intentions after months of mixed signals.
Greenland’s government, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, has rebuffed every overture. Motzfeldt told News Of Losangeles on Tuesday: “Greenland does not want to be owned by, governed by or part of the United States. We choose the Greenland we know today-as part of the Kingdom of Denmark.”
Anxiety in Nuuk
Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business and mineral resources, said public concern is so high that residents “are having trouble sleeping.”
Polling last year showed 85 percent of Greenlanders oppose becoming part of the U.S., and leaders fear economic pressure or security leverage could erode their autonomy.
| Option | Estimated Cost | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Direct purchase | $500B-$700B | Under review |
| Compact of Free Association | Tens of billions over decades | Also under review |
| Military expansion under current pact | Minimal new funds | Already permissible |
Other Pathways
White House allies say a Compact of Free Association-similar to U.S. deals with the Marshall Islands, Micronesia and Palau-could satisfy Trump’s goals at a fraction of the purchase price. Such an agreement would deliver annual U.S. subsidies in exchange for military access and veto power over foreign security deals.
A U.S. official familiar with planning called a forced takeover illogical: “Why invade the cow when they’ll sell you the milk at relatively good prices?” The U.S. already operates Pituffik Space Base in northwest Greenland, hosting radar systems that monitor potential Russian missile launches.
Historical Precedent
Washington’s last territorial expansion in the region came in 1917, when the U.S. bought the Danish West Indies-now the U.S. Virgin Islands-for $25 million. The same treaty acknowledged Danish sovereignty over Greenland, complicating any modern claim.
Trump, a former real-estate developer, has likened acquisition to buying rather than leasing property, saying ownership would secure long-term strategic rights over the island’s 27,000-mile coastline.
Hill Pushback
A bipartisan Senate pair introduced legislation Tuesday that would bar the Pentagon from using funds to seize the sovereign territory of a NATO ally without approval from the North Atlantic Council. The move signals unease among Republicans who backed Trump’s recent military raid in Venezuela but draw the line at threatening Denmark, a founding NATO member.
Ian Lesser of the German Marshall Fund predicted armed conflict is unlikely: “It would stir up unbelievable tensions within the NATO alliance and maybe even spell the end of NATO.”
Key Takeaways
- The White House is moving from rhetoric to a formal purchase plan, despite a $700 billion price tag.
- Greenland and Denmark refuse to sell, prompting consideration of economic or security leverage.
- Congress is mobilizing to block any unilateral military action, underscoring trans-Atlantic strains.
For now, officials in Nuuk are clinging to the status quo while preparing for intensified U.S. pressure. As Nathanielsen put it: “We have no intentions of becoming American.”
