Congressman: Greenland crucial for US national security amid arctic tensions

US Congressman Mike Waltz emphasized Greenland's significance for American national security following President-elect Donald Trump's comments about US control over the Arctic island.

"You have Russia that is trying to become king of the Arctic, with 60-plus icebreakers, some of them nuclear power. We have two, and one just caught on fire," Waltz said, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Waltz, who was designated as Trump's national security adviser, further discussed the geopolitical importance, stating, "This is about critical minerals. This is about natural resources. This is about, as the polar ice caps pull back, the Chinese are now cranking out icebreakers and pushing up there as well. So it's oil and gas. It's our national security."

Despite Trump's suggestion of using military or economic measures to acquire Greenland, the Danish government rejected the idea in 2019, and Greenland's Prime Minister Mute Egede reiterated on Wednesday that the island is "not for sale."

The Arctic island's government acknowledged the evolving security dynamics and expressed a commitment to collaborate with the incoming Trump administration and NATO allies to maintain regional security and stability. Greenland, part of NATO through Denmark, plays a pivotal role in US military strategy, particularly in its ballistic missile early-warning system.

Meanwhile, Poland's Defence Minister, Mariusz Blaszczak, downplayed US President-elect Donald Trump's statements on Greenland, calling them "a rhetorical game." Speaking to journalists after the first part of the 25th meeting of Western countries coordinating military aid to Ukraine at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Blaszczak stated, "I believe this is purely a rhetorical game, setting the bar higher in words than the actions that will follow."

The minister suggested that Denmark had already agreed to allow the US military to use the island for operations. "In the modern world, short statements don't always translate into actions," he concluded.

By Aghakazim Guliyev