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One of Donald Trump’s senior advisors has increased tensions on the Danish government by challenging Copenhagen’s claim to Greenland.

Military Intervention Dismissed

Stephen Miller, stated emphatically the use of armed force would not be necessary to take over the northern landmass because “nobody is going to fight the United States militarily over the future of Greenland”.

“What do you mean military action against Greenland? Greenland has 30,000 inhabitants people,” Miller inaccurately claimed, despite the actual figure being closer to 57,000.

Miller further proposed that Copenhagen lacks a legitimate right to the territory, which is a former Danish colony and continues as a constituent country of the Danish kingdom.

Growing Tensions

These remarks follow a period of increasing friction between the two NATO allies after the American leader's repeated interest to acquire Greenland.

The Danish foreign policy committee has convened an emergency session to examine the bilateral ties with the United States.

Speaking to media, Miller told CNN that control over Greenland could be achieved without military intervention due to its small population.

Questioning Danish Sovereignty

“The core issue is on what grounds does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What legal foundation 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 safeguard the alliance, obviously Greenland should be incorporated into the United States.”

He stated there was “no requirement to even consider or discuss” a armed takeover in Greenland, reiterating: “No country would wage war against the US over this issue.”

Global Responses

His comments came after Trump remarked recently, following events in Venezuela, that the US desired the territory “urgently”.

Denmark's leader, Mette Frederiksen, responded by warning that an American aggression against a fellow alliance member would mean the end of the military alliance and “the postwar security order”.

Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also made a forceful rebuke, urging Trump to give up his “notions of acquisition” and labeled American rhetoric of being “wholly inappropriate”.

Background and Present Position

The aide's assertions came after his wife, podcaster Katie Miller, shared a digital image of Greenland draped in a US flag with the caption “SOON”.

Asked about the online image, he responded by stating: “This has represented the formal position of the US government from the start of this presidency... The president has been very clear about that.”

Greenland was under colonial rule until 1953, when it was integrated of the kingdom of Denmark. The US has had a military base there, critical to its national missile defense network.

Recently, there has been increasing sentiment for self-rule, especially following disclosures about historical policies of Greenlandic people.

However, facing the prospect of Trump’s threat, Greenland in March formed a new coalition government in a show of national unity, with its founding document declaring: “Greenland belongs to us.”