Recently President Donald Trump has expressed interest in buying the island of Greenland from Denmark, stating, “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.” Greenland’s location on the Russian-controlled Northern Sea Route, abundance of rare minerals, and large size make the island an ideal American asset.
Last week President Trump had a reportedly “fiery” phone call with Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, where she reiterated that Greenland was not for sale, nor would she consider negotiating a price. Since 2009, Greenland has had the right to declare independence if the nation votes to do so.
Múte B. Egede, Greenland’s premier, has recently expressed Greenland’s growing want for total freedom from Denmark, meaning that they would likely resist being bought by America. While it is clear that Greenland isn’t for sale, how much would it cost if we hypothetically purchased it?
GDP:
A country’s gross domestic product (GDP) calculates the total value of goods and services produced within a country during a period of time. In 2021, Greenland’s GDP was estimated to be $3.236 billion USD, an increase from $2.499 billion USD in 2015. The growing GDP of Greenland would likely increase the island’s value.
Let’s say if the purchase was to be made in May, with similar growth, then we can estimate that the GDP would be $3.456 billion USD. We’ll use this number as a starting point and add the other costs to it.
Natural Resources:
Fishing is the island’s largest industry with fish and fish products accounting for over 85% of the nation’s exports. In addition to fishing, Greenland is rich in natural resources including gold, diamonds, and unexploited gas.
What truly makes Greenland valuable is the amount of rare Earth minerals, such as zirconium, niobium, and yttrium, which are used in phones, MRI machines, and military equipment. Since the United States relies heavily on China for these rare minerals, the price tag would be increased.
Let’s say one ton of zirconium is $5,600 and there are 2 million tons in Greenland, bringing the total cost to $11,200,000,000. If we do the same with each valuable resource on the island, data analyst Jacob Jensen stated that it would cost approximately $200 billion. This brings our total to $203.45 billion.
Size:
Greenland is the largest island in the world with a total area of 836,330 square miles when including its offshore islands. For context, America’s largest state, Alaska, is only 665,384 square miles. If America were to buy Alaska today, it would cost us about $153.5 million compared to the $7.2 million it sold for in 1867. However, Alaska was not purchased for security reasons, but rather for expansion, which lowered the price.
On the flip side, the Virgin Islands were bought from Denmark in 1917 to secure an economic presence in the Caribbean after the Panama Canal opened.
Because of Greenland’s use for security and sheer size, let’s add another $170 million to the tab, bringing the total to buy Greenland to roughly $203.62 billion.
