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One of Donald Trump’s senior advisors has increased tensions on Denmark by challenging Copenhagen’s claim to the vast Arctic island.

Military Intervention Dismissed

Stephen Miller, also claimed the use of armed force would not be necessary to take over the northern landmass because “no nation would engage 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,” Miller inaccurately claimed, despite the actual figure being closer to 57,000.

He also suggested that Denmark does not have a legitimate right to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and remains part of the Danish kingdom.

Growing Tensions

Miller’s comments follow a period of growing tensions between the US and Denmark after the American leader's repeated interest to annex Greenland.

The Danish foreign policy committee has called an emergency session to examine the kingdom’s relationship with the United States.

Speaking to media, Miller told CNN that control over Greenland could be achieved without armed conflict due to its limited number of residents.

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The real question is what right does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What is the basis of their territorial claim?” Miller questioned.

Miller continued: “As the leading power within the power of NATO. For the US to secure the Arctic region to safeguard the alliance, it is logical that Greenland should be incorporated into the United States.”

He stated there was “no need to even consider or discuss” a armed takeover in Greenland, adding: “Nobody is going to fight the US militarily.”

International Reactions

His comments came after Trump remarked recently, fresh from events in Venezuela, that the US desired the territory “very badly”.

The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, reacted by warning that an attack by the US a NATO ally would mean the collapse of the defensive pact and “the postwar security order”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, issued a forceful rebuke, calling on the US president to abandon his “fantasies about annexation” and labeled American rhetoric of being “completely and utterly unacceptable”.

Historical Context and Current Stance

The aide's assertions were preceded by his wife, a conservative commentator, shared a digital image of Greenland under a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

When questioned on the online image, he laughed and said: “This has represented the official stance of the US government from the start of this presidency... Donald Trump has been very clear about that.”

Greenland was under colonial rule until 1953, when it was integrated of the Danish realm. The US has had a military base there, important for its ballistic missile early warning system.

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

But amid the spectre of Trump’s threat, Greenland in March established a new unity government in a show of national unity, with its founding document declaring: “Greenland belongs to us.”