Donald Trump is playing hemispheric monopoly. Depending on what day of the week it is, the President’s focus alternates between Venezuela, Canada, the Panama canal – and for the last twelve months or so, Greenland. Given what Trump and his team have said over the past week, their acquisition plans for the island are well advanced. But why exactly does he want Greenland?

The world’s largest island is an integral part of the Kingdom of Denmark and is about three times larger than Texas. While the term du jour is geopolitics, perhaps the most plausible reason for why Trump is gunning for Greenland is ego-politics. We have a president eager to make America great again and complete the task that his predecessor President Monroe started some 200 years ago. Over 40 per cent of the United States was acquired via land purchasing and the Trump purchase (if that what it turns out to be) would unquestionably secure this president’s place in history and geography. No doubt there would be sponsors for Trump’s profile to be carved out of Mount Rushmore.

Acquiring Greenland, beyond ego-politics, dovetails with the White House’s national security strategy, published in November, that is grounded in hemispheric power. The US’s strategic priorities are the Indo-Pacific region (code for China), western hemisphere, new strategic domains such as the oceans and space, and finally the Euro-Atlantic theatre. America is not turning its back on Europe. It is, however, sending a clear message that the long era of financial free-riding in security terms is over.

Greenland is bearing the brunt of Trump’s ambition. He wants it.

If the western hemisphere is........

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