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The Trump administration is considering offering lump-sum payments of up to $100,000 to each resident of Greenland as part of an effort to purchase the Arctic island, according to media reports published Thursday.
The reports followed comments from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said he told lawmakers earlier this week that the administration’s goal is to buy the territory from Denmark.
U.S. officials, including White House aides, have discussed paying $10,000 to $100,000 per person to Greenland’s roughly 57,000 residents, according to Reuters. One source told Reuters that discussions of direct payments are not new but have gained momentum in recent days as officials considered higher figures. A payment of $100,000 per resident would total nearly $6 billion.
Many details of the proposal remain unclear, including how or when payments would be distributed, what legal framework would be used, or what would be expected of Greenland’s residents in return if the administration moves forward. The White House has also not ruled out military intervention, though officials have stressed that the preferred approach is through purchase or other diplomatic means.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a briefing on Wednesday that a plan to purchase Greenland is “being actively discussed” by President Donald Trump and his national security team.
“I would point out that the acquisition of Greenland by the United States is not a new idea,” Leavitt said. “This is something that presidents dating back to the 1800s have said is advantageous for America’s national security.”
Leavitt said President Trump views ownership of Greenland as critical to countering Russian and Chinese influence in the Arctic region.
“The president has been very open and clear … that he views it in the best interest of the United States to deter Russian and Chinese aggression in the Arctic region,” she said.
Denmark’s ambassador to the United States and Greenland’s chief representative met Thursday with White House National Security Council officials to discuss President Trump’s renewed push to acquire the island. Rubio is expected to meet with Danish officials next week.