Reuters: Trump administration considers payments to convince Greenlanders to join US

Jan 8 (Reuters) – U.S. officials have discussed sending lump sum payments to Greenlanders as part of an attempt to convince them to break away from Denmark and potentially join the United States, according to four sources familiar with the matter.

While the exact dollar figure and logistics of any payment are unclear, U.S. officials, including White House advisers, have discussed figures ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 per person, said two of the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

The idea of ​​paying residents of Greenland, an overseas territory of Denmark, directly, offers one explanation for how the United States could try to “buy” the island of 57,000 people, despite the insistence of authorities in Copenhagen and Nuuk that Greenland is not for sale. The tactic is among several plans the White House is discussing to acquire Greenland, including potential use of the U.S. military. But it risks appearing too transactional and even demeaning to a population that has long debated its own independence and economic dependence on Denmark. “Enough is enough… No more fantasies about annexation,” Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen wrote in a Facebook post on Sunday after US President Donald Trump again told reporters that the US needed to acquire the island.

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EUROPEAN LEADERS SAY DECISION FOR GREENLAND AND DENMARK

Leaders in Copenhagen and across Europe have reacted with disdain to comments by Trump and other White House officials asserting their claim to Greenland in recent days, particularly given that the United States and Denmark are NATO allies linked by a mutual defense agreement. On Tuesday, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Britain and Denmark issued a joint statement, saying that only Greenland and Denmark can decide matters related to their relations.

Asked for comment on discussions to purchase the island, including the possibility of direct payments to Greenlanders, the White House referred Reuters to comments by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday.

During a news conference, Leavitt acknowledged that Trump and his national security aides were “looking at what a potential purchase would look like.” Rubio said he would meet with his Danish counterpart next week in Washington to discuss Greenland.

The Danish embassy declined to comment and Greenland’s representative office in Washington did not respond to a request for comment.

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DISCUSSIONS IN GREENLAND GET MORE SERIOUS

Trump has long argued that the United States needs to acquire Greenland for several reasons, including the fact that it is rich in minerals needed for advanced military applications. He has also said that, broadly speaking, the Western Hemisphere should be under Washington’s geopolitical influence.

While internal deliberations over how to seize Greenland have been occurring among Trump aides since before he took office a year ago, there has been renewed urgency after his government captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in a daring seizure operation over the weekend, according to sources familiar with internal deliberations.

One source said White House advisers were eager to build on the momentum of the Maduro operation to achieve Trump’s other long-standing geopolitical goals.

“We need Greenland from a national security standpoint, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday. “It’s very strategic.”

One of the sources familiar with White House deliberations said internal discussions about lump-sum payments were not necessarily new. However, that person said, they had gotten more serious in recent days and attendees were considering higher values, with a payout of $100,000 per person, which would result in a total payout of nearly $6 billion, a real possibility.

Many details of any potential payments were unclear, such as when and how they would be distributed if the Trump administration went that route or what exactly Greenlanders would be expected to do in return. The White House has said a military intervention is possible, although officials have also said the United States prefers to buy the island or acquire it through diplomatic means.

FREE ASSOCIATION CONTRACT AN OPTION

Among the possibilities being raised by Trump’s advisers, a White House official said Tuesday, is trying to enter into some type of agreement with the island called the Compact of Free Association.

The precise details of the COFA agreements, which have only been extended to the small island nations of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau, vary depending on the signatory. But the U.S. government typically provides many essential services, such as mail delivery and military protection. In exchange, the US military operates freely in COFA countries and trade with the United States is largely tax-free.

COFA agreements have previously been signed with independent countries, and Greenland would likely need to break away from Denmark for such a plan to move forward. In theory, the payments could be used to induce Greenlanders to vote for independence or to sign a COFA after such a vote.

While polls show that an overwhelming majority of Greenlanders want independence, concerns about the economic costs of separating from Denmark – among other issues – have prevented most Greenlandic lawmakers from calling an independence referendum.

Polls also show that most Greenlanders, while open to separating from Denmark, do not want to be part of the United States.

(Reporting by Gram Slattery in Miami; Editing by Colleen Jenkins, Rod Nickel)