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A key figure from Donald Trump's top aides has ramped up the pressure on Denmark by challenging Denmark's sovereign claim to Greenland.

Military Intervention Dismissed

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically the use of armed force would not be needed to take over the Arctic territory because “no nation would engage the United States in combat over the fate of Greenland”.

“What do you mean military action against Greenland? Its population numbers just 30,000 inhabitants people,” Miller inaccurately claimed, despite the actual figure being closer to 57,000.

He also suggested that Denmark does not have a valid claim to the region, which is a one-time colonial possession and continues as a constituent country of the Danish kingdom.

Escalating Diplomatic Strains

Miller’s comments follow a period of increasing friction between the US and Denmark after the US president’s renewed calls to acquire Greenland.

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

In his interview, Miller asserted that control over Greenland could be gained 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 ownership claim?” he asked.

He added: “As the leading power within the dominant force in NATO. For the US to secure the Arctic region to defend NATO, obviously Greenland should be part of the US.”

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

International Reactions

His comments came after Trump said over the weekend, following events in Venezuela, that the US desired the territory “very badly”.

Denmark's leader, Mette Frederiksen, reacted by saying that an attack by the US a NATO ally would mean the end of the military alliance and “the postwar security order”.

The island's own leader, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a strong statement, urging Trump to give up his “fantasies about annexation” and labeled American rhetoric of being “wholly inappropriate”.

Background and Present Position

Miller’s comments were preceded by his wife, a conservative commentator, posted a map on social media of Greenland draped in a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

Asked about the social media post, he laughed and said: “This has represented the formal position of the US government from the start of this presidency... The president has been explicit about that.”

The territory remained a colony until 1953, when it was integrated of the kingdom of Denmark. The US has had a strategic installation there, important for its national missile defense network.

In recent years, there has been increasing sentiment for Greenlandic independence, especially following revelations about Denmark’s treatment of Greenlandic people.

However, facing the spectre of acquisition talk, Greenland in March established a new unity government in a demonstration of solidarity, with its founding document declaring: “We are the rightful owners of Greenland.”