US President Donald Trump has renewed his ambition to take control of Greenland for national security reasons and questioned whether Denmark has any legal right to the Arctic island. The debate has revived scrutiny of how Greenland became part of Denmark, its current self-rule and path to independence, and Washington’s military footprint.
HOW DID DENMARK GET GREENLAND?
Greenland was inhabited by Inuit peoples from Asia and North America intermittently from around 2,500 BC. Around 985 AD, Vikings led by Erik the Red settled in southern Greenland, farming and building churches. Around the same time, ancestors of today’s Inuit arrived, living as hunters and gatherers. They became the dominant culture, pushing out Viking settlers around 1400.
Photo: AFP 照片：法新社
Denmark colonized Greenland in the 18th century when missionary Hans Egede arrived in 1721, marking the start of the colonial era. A statue of Egede still stands on a hilltop in the capital Nuuk’s colonial harbor, seen by many Greenlanders as a symbol of lost Inuit traditions.
In 1916, the United States bought the Danish West Indies — now the US Virgin Islands — for US$25 million in gold. As part of that treaty, Washington declared it would not object to the Danish government extending its “political and economic interests to the whole of Greenland,” formally recognizing Danish sovereignty.
WHAT IS GREENLAND’S STATUS NOW?
Photo: AFP 照片：法新社
Greenland shifted from colony to formal territory in 1953 under Denmark’s constitution, though Greenlanders were not consulted. Any sale would require a constitutional amendment. Since 2009, Greenland can declare independence through a self-rule process requiring a referendum and Danish parliamentary approval.
Autonomy is extensive but excludes foreign affairs and defense unless agreed. Greenland has about 57,000 people, limited infrastructure and no roads between its around 17 towns.
HOW ARE RELATIONS BETWEEN DENMARK AND GREENLAND?
Relations have been strained by revelations of historical misconduct. In the 1950s, Danish authorities forcibly relocated Inuit to larger towns, marginalizing the practices and languages of indigenous people who make up almost 90 percent of the population. Denmark apologized in 2022 for a 1950s experiment that sent Greenlandic children to Denmark.
Records show thousands of women and girls as young as 13 were fitted with intrauterine devices without consent between 1966 and 1991, when Greenland gained control over healthcare. Denmark apologized last year for the decades-long birth control campaign. A 2025 documentary alleged Denmark and companies profited from a cryolite mine between 1853 and 1987 without benefiting locals. Cryolite, used in aluminum production, was mined in Greenland at the world’s largest deposit.
WHAT IS GREENLAND’S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE EU?
Greenland joined the European Community in 1973 via Denmark but withdrew in 1985 after gaining home rule. It now holds Overseas Country and Territory status with the EU, maintaining a special fisheries arrangement.
WHAT IS THE US PRESENCE?
The US military maintains a permanent presence at Pituffik air base in northwest Greenland under a 1951 agreement granting freedom to build bases with Danish and Greenlandic notification.
Denmark has historically accommodated the US presence because Copenhagen does not have the capability to defend Greenland and benefits from US security guarantees through NATO.
WHY DOES TRUMP WANT GREENLAND?
Trump has said acquiring Greenland is a national security priority. The shortest route from Europe to North America runs via Greenland, making it important for the US ballistic missile early-warning system. Nuuk is closer to New York than to Copenhagen.
Greenland sits at a geopolitical crossroads amid Arctic militarization by NATO, Russia and China. The US wants to expand its military footprint, including radars to monitor waters used by Russian vessels and submarines. The island also holds mineral, oil and gas wealth, though development has been slow.
WHAT DO GREENLANDERS WANT?
Polls indicate a majority of Greenlanders support independence in principle. But many warn against rushing due to economic reliance on Denmark and becoming overly exposed to the US if independence is pursued too quickly.
Fishing accounts for over 90 percent of exports, while Danish subsidies cover about half the public budget, funding hospitals and schools and underpinning infrastructure for the vast sparsely populated territory.
Independence could allow association with the US under a Compact of Free Association (COFA), similar to agreements with Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands. COFA typically provides US services and military protection in exchange for defense access, but whether Greenland would benefit depends on the scale of support and the pace of economic diversification beyond fishing.
WHAT DO DENMARK AND GREENLAND SAY?
When Trump offered to buy the island during his first presidential term, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called it “absurd.”
Frederiksen and Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen reiterated in December 2025 that Greenland could not be annexed and international security did not justify such a move.(Reuters)
美國總統唐納．川普以國家安全為由，再度表達希望掌控格陵蘭的企圖，並質疑丹麥對這座北極島嶼是否擁有合法主權。這番言論引發了外界關注，重新審視格陵蘭如何成為丹麥的一部分、其現行自治地位與獨立之路，以及華府在當地的軍事部署。
丹麥是如何取得格陵蘭的？
約自西元前2500年起，來自亞洲與北美的因紐特人便斷斷續續居住在格陵蘭。西元985年左右，維京人在「紅鬍子艾瑞克」（Erik the Red）率領下，定居在格陵蘭南部，從事農耕並興建教堂。大約同一時期，今日因紐特人的祖先來到這裡，以狩獵與採集維生。到了約1400年，因紐特文化成為主流，維京人逐漸被取代。
18世紀，丹麥開始殖民格陵蘭。1721年，傳教士漢斯．艾格德（Hans Egede）抵達，象徵殖民時代的開端。現今在格陵蘭首府努克（Nuuk）殖民港口的山丘上，仍立有艾格德雕像，許多格陵蘭人將其視為因紐特傳統流失的象徵。
1916年，美國以2,500萬美元黃金向丹麥購得丹屬西印度群島（今美屬維京群島）。該條約中，華府聲明不反對丹麥政府將其「政治與經濟利益擴展至整個格陵蘭」，正式承認丹麥對格陵蘭的主權。
格陵蘭目前的地位
1953年，格陵蘭依丹麥憲法由殖民地轉為正式領土，但當時並未徵詢格陵蘭人民的意見。任何出售行為都必須透過修憲。自2009年起，格陵蘭可依自治程序宣布獨立——須經公投並獲丹麥國會批准。
格陵蘭的自治權範圍很廣，但外交與國防仍不包括在內，除非另有協議。格陵蘭人口約5萬7千人，有大約17個城鎮，基礎設施有限，城鎮之間並無公路相連。
丹麥與格陵蘭關係如何？
過去不當的政策被揭露，使得雙方關係一度緊張。1950年代，丹麥政府強制將因紐特人遷往較大的城鎮，占人口近九成的原住民族群，其生活方式及語言被邊緣化。2022年，丹麥就1950年代將格陵蘭兒童送往丹麥的實驗性政策道歉。
檔案顯示，1966年至1991年間，在未經同意下，數以千計的女人與女孩被裝置子宮內避孕器，有人甚至年僅13歲，直到1991年格陵蘭取得醫療主導權才停止。丹麥在2025年為這長達數十年的節育政策道歉。同年，一部紀錄片指控丹麥與企業在1853年至1987年之間，從格陵蘭的冰晶石礦獲利，卻未讓當地受益。冰晶石是鋁生產的重要原料，格陵蘭有全球最大的冰晶石礦藏。
格陵蘭與歐盟的關係
格陵蘭在1973年隨丹麥加入歐洲共同體，但在取得自治地位後，於1985年退出。格陵蘭現為歐盟的「域外國家及領土」（OCT），並保有特殊的漁業規範。
美國在格陵蘭的勢力
依1951年協議，美軍在格陵蘭西北部的皮圖菲克（Pituffik）空軍基地維持永久駐軍，並可在知會丹麥與格陵蘭後自由興建基地。
丹麥長期配合美方，因哥本哈根本身無力防衛格陵蘭，且可透過北約受益於美國的安全保障。
川普為何想要格陵蘭？
川普表示，取得格陵蘭是國安優先事項。歐洲通往北美的最短航線會經過格陵蘭，使其對美國彈道飛彈預警系統至關重要；而且，努克跟紐約的距離比哥本哈根還近。
在北約、俄羅斯與中國推動北極軍事化的背景下，格陵蘭位處地緣政治要衝。美國希望擴大軍事足跡，包括部署雷達以監控俄羅斯艦艇與潛艦活動。該島亦蘊藏礦產、石油與天然氣，但開發進展緩慢。
格陵蘭人想要什麼？
民調顯示，多數格陵蘭人原則上支持獨立，但也警告不宜操之過急，因其經濟高度依賴丹麥，且過快獨立可能使其過度暴露於美國影響之下。
漁業占格陵蘭出口逾九成；公共預算約有一半是由丹麥補助，支撐醫療、教育與這地廣人稀地區的基礎建設。
格陵蘭獨立後，可能與美國建立「自由聯合協定」（COFA），類似密克羅尼西亞、帛琉與馬紹爾群島的協議。COFA通常以提供美國服務與軍事保護，換取防務進入權；是否對格陵蘭有利，取決於支援規模及漁業以外的經濟多元化速度。
丹麥與格陵蘭的官方說法
川普在第一任期提出購買格陵蘭時，丹麥首相梅特．弗雷德里克森（Mette Frederiksen）稱此想法「荒謬」。
她與格陵蘭總理詹斯－弗雷德里克．尼爾森（Jens-Frederik Nielsen）於2025年12月重申，格陵蘭不能被併吞，國際安全也不足以成為正當理由。（台北時報林俐凱編譯）
Skating is a popular recreational and competitive activity that involves sliding over surfaces using specially designed footwear. Its origins date back over 1,000 years to Northern Europe, where people first strapped animal bones to their feet to move across frozen lakes and rivers. In the 17th century, the Dutch transformed skating into a leisure activity. They also replaced bone blades with metal, leading to the creation of modern ice skates. Today, ice skating is enjoyed as a global sport and an exciting pastime by people of all ages. Figure skating is one of the best-known and most graceful forms of skating.
Have you ever gazed at the night sky and felt as though the Moon loomed larger than usual? Your eyes were not deceiving you. The Moon’s apparent size can __1__ subtly depending on where it is in its orbit. On certain occasions, it reaches its fullest phase while at its closest point to Earth. When these two events __2__, scientists and the public refer to the spectacle as a “supermoon.” The Moon does not orbit our planet in a perfect circle. Instead, it travels along a more oval-shaped __3__, completing one full orbit every 27 days. Consequently, there are times when
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