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A key figure from Donald Trump's top aides has increased tensions on the Danish government by challenging Copenhagen’s claim to the vast Arctic island.

Force Deemed Unnecessary

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically the use of armed force would not be needed to take over the northern landmass because “nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over the fate of Greenland”.

“What do you mean military action against Greenland? Greenland has a population of 30,000 people,” he incorrectly stated, the correct number being closer to 57,000.

He also suggested that Copenhagen lacks a valid claim to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and remains part of the Danish kingdom.

Growing Tensions

These remarks follow a period of increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the American leader's repeated interest 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 control over Greenland could be gained without military intervention due to its limited number of residents.

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The core issue is what right does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What is the basis of their territorial claim?” he asked.

He added: “The US is the power of NATO. For the US to protect Arctic interests to safeguard the alliance, obviously Greenland should be incorporated into the United States.”

There was, he said “no need to even consider or discuss” a armed takeover in Greenland, adding: “Nobody is going to fight the US over this issue.”

Global Responses

These statements came after Trump remarked recently, following events in Venezuela, that the US needed Greenland “very badly”.

The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, responded by warning that an American aggression against a NATO ally would mean the end of the defensive pact and “post-Second World War security”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a forceful rebuke, urging Trump to abandon 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, a conservative commentator, posted a map on social media of Greenland under a US flag with the tag “SOON”.

Asked about the online image, he responded by stating: “It has been the formal position of the US government from the start of this presidency... Donald Trump has been very clear about that.”

The territory remained a colony until 1953, when it was integrated of the kingdom of Denmark. The US maintains a strategic installation there, critical to its ballistic missile early warning system.

In recent years, there has been growing support for self-rule, especially following revelations about Denmark’s treatment of the local population.

But amid the spectre of Trump’s threat, Greenland in March formed a new coalition government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its founding document declaring: “We are the rightful owners of Greenland.”