US financial aid for Greenland sparks outrage in Denmark

News:The United States offering a $12m financial package to Greenland has angered Denmark as the autonomous island falls within the territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Facts:

• Greenland is the world’s largest island located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago
• It is an autonomous Denmark territory with limited self-government and its own parliament.
• Significance:Potential oil, gas and rare earth mineral reserves have attracted prospecting firms.
• Issue: US President wants to buy Greenland as it is in a crucial strategic location in case tensions with Russia rise.
• The US had also established the Thule air force and radar base at the start of the Cold War which now covers space surveillance and forms the northernmost part of the US ballistic missile early warning system.