Since his first term, President-elect Donald Trump has insisted that the United States should purchase Greenland - to the bewilderment of aides asked to investigate such a possibility, and despite repeated denials by top officials in Greenland and Denmark, of which the island is an autonomous territory, that it would ever be for sale at any price.

Donald Trump hinted he still wants to buy Greenland, a self-ruling territory of Denmark, saying that US ownership and control of the island is an “absolute necessity” for national security.

The mineral history of Greenland reveals that the United States could have a military presence and environmental security without acquiring the massive island.