Is the US carrying out spying operations in Greenland?

The row between Denmark and the United States over Greenland has flared up again. The Danish foreign minister has summoned the head of the US Embassy following reports that American citizens have been conducting “covert influence operations” in Greenland.

These Americans allegedly have close links to US President Donald Trump. The report comes as Trump has repeatedly spoken about taking over Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark.

Let’s take a closer look.

Is the US spying on Greenland?

On Wednesday (August 27) morning, Denmark’s public broadcaster DR reported, citing anonymous government and security sources, as well as unidentified sources in Greenland and the US, that at least three Americans with ties to President Trump have been carrying out “covert influence operations” in Greenland .

As per Associated Press (AP), one of the Americans has been accused of compiling a list of Greenlanders friendly to the US, as well as those opposed to Trump. The person also allegedly asked locals to “point out cases that could be used to put Denmark in a bad light in American media”.

Two other Americans tried to build contacts with politicians, businesspeople and locals, AP reported, citing DR.

An influence operation is a planned effort to mould how people in a society think for achieving certain political, military or other objectives.

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According to DR, its story was based on information from eight sources, who claimed the covert operation’s aim was to weaken relations with Denmark from within Greenlandic society and promote the Arctic island’s secession from Denmark to the US.

The Danish broadcaster said it could not ascertain whether the three Americans were working on their own initiative or on orders from someone else.

Denmark summons US envoy

Hours after DR’s report, Denmark’s foreign minister summoned the top US diplomat in Copenhagen, the chargé d’affaires, for a meeting. Mark Stroh is the chargé d’affaires at the US embassy and its most senior diplomat in Denmark at present.

Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Denmark’s foreign minister, said on Wednesday that “any attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of the Kingdom [of Denmark] will of course be unacceptable”, as per BBC.

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The foreign minister said in a statement that the Danish government was “aware that foreign actors continue to show an interest in Greenland and its position in the Kingdom of Denmark”.

“It is therefore not surprising if we experience outside attempts to influence the future of the Kingdom in the time ahead,” he added.

Rasmussen said in television interviews: “It’s important that we gain some insight into this so that our people — in both Greenland and Denmark — know what it is that we risk being up against.”

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen reportedly talked to a delegation of US Senate representatives and told them that the alleged interference was “unacceptable.”

Denmark’s security and intelligence service (PET) warned that “Greenland, especially in the current situation, is the target of influence campaigns of various kinds. PET expects that such campaigns have the purpose of creating a split in the relationship between Denmark and Greenland”.

It told AP that it “assesses that this could be done by exploiting existing or fabricated disagreements, for example in connection with well-known individual cases, or by promoting or amplifying certain viewpoints in Greenland regarding the Kingdom, the United States, or other countries with a particular interest in Greenland.”

Jens Ladefoged Mortensen of the University of Copenhagen told BBC that the Danish foreign minister’s decision to summon the US charge d’affaires amounted to a “diplomatic yellow card” unprecedented in Danish relations with the US.

“This hostile attitude towards Denmark from the Trump administration is shocking. As a pro-American country we’re asking why are you doing this,” he said.

Danish politicians reacted to the espionage reports, saying it would put pressure on the relationship between Denmark and the US.

“This means the whole misery over Greenland is not over,” former Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard told the TV channel TV2. “This is putting a heavy strain on our relationship with the US — and Americans should know that too,” he added.

Trump’s interest in Greenland

Trump has repeatedly said he wants to “get” Greenland, while Denmark has dismissed the US president’s insistence.

Trump has also not ruled out military force to take control of the mineral-rich island. He told reporters in March that the US will “go as far as we have to go” to gain control of Greenland, calling the ownership of the territory “an absolute necessity.”

Denmark, a Nato ally of the US, and Greenland have asserted that the island is not for sale.

During US Vice-President JD Vance’s visit to a US military base on the island in March, he accused Denmark of not doing a “good job by the people of Greenland”.

Denmark had summoned the top US diplomat in May, after Wall Street Journal reported that a classified message was sent to American intelligence agencies to focus their efforts on Greenland.

The island, which is rich in resources including critical minerals, has a complex relationship with Denmark. While Greenland has broad self-government since 1979, its foreign and defence policy is decided in Copenhagen.

Still, most Greenlanders do not want to join the United States, according to recent polls.

Greenland leader Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in May that the US would not be taking over the territory: “We don’t belong to anyone else. We decide our own future.”

With inputs from agencies