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One of Donald Trump’s top aides has ramped up the pressure on the Danish government by challenging Copenhagen’s claim to Greenland.

Military Intervention Dismissed

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically military intervention 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? Greenland has 30,000 inhabitants people,” he incorrectly stated, despite the actual figure being closer to 57,000.

He also suggested that Denmark does not have a valid claim to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and remains part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Growing Tensions

Miller’s comments come amid increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the American leader's repeated interest to annex Greenland.

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

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

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The core issue is what right does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What is the basis of their ownership claim?” he asked.

Miller continued: “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 incorporated into the United States.”

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.”

Global Responses

These statements followed Trump said over the weekend, fresh from other foreign policy actions, that the US needed Greenland “urgently”.

The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, reacted by saying that an American aggression against a fellow alliance member would mean the collapse of the military alliance and “the postwar security order”.

The island's own leader, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a forceful rebuke, calling on the US president to give up his “notions of acquisition” and labeled American rhetoric of being “wholly inappropriate”.

Background and Present Position

Miller’s comments were preceded by his wife, podcaster Katie Miller, posted a digital image of Greenland under a US flag with the tag “IN THE NEAR FUTURE”.

When questioned on the online image, he responded by stating: “This has represented the official stance of the US government since the beginning of this administration... 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 strategic installation there, critical to its ballistic missile early warning system.

In recent years, there has been increasing sentiment for self-rule, especially following disclosures about Denmark’s treatment of Greenlandic people.

But amid the prospect of acquisition talk, Greenland in March established a new unity government in a show of national unity, with its agreement stating: “Greenland belongs to us.”