"It's a big real estate transaction." It is with such casualty that US President Donald Trump on Sunday (August 18th) described his desire to buy Greenland from Denmark, whose island of nearly 2.1 million square kilometers is a semi- autonomous. An interest that reflects the American awareness of the importance of Greenland but also, more broadly, the entire Arctic region against Russian and Chinese rivals.

"This is something we talked about," said the former real estate mogul at a news conference. "The concept has come up and I said that strategically, it's certainly interesting and that we would be interested, but we will talk a little bit" with Denmark, continued the president, adding that it was not "the priority number a "for his government. He is scheduled to visit the Scandinavian country on the 2nd and 3rd of September for a state visit.

The Wall Street Journal, the economic daily, first revealed on August 15 that the US president had "repeatedly shown interest in the purchase" of this territory of some 56,000 inhabitants and had spoken to his advisers at the White House. The billionaire learned about natural resources and the geopolitical importance of the region.

A region rich in resources

"Greenland is rich in precious resources (...) We are ready to do business, not to sell" the territory, had reacted immediately August 16, the Greenlandic Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Twitter.

#Greenland is rich in valuable resources such as minerals, the purest water and ice, fish stocks, seafood, renewable energy and is a new frontier for adventure tourism. We're open for business, learn more about Greenland on: https://t.co/WulOi3beIC

Greenland MFA 🇬🇱 (@GreenlandMFA) August 16, 2019

"The majority of Greenland's resources are located on the 20% of its land not covered by ice and in its maritime territory." The fishery resources, derived from the latter, constitute 90% of exports and the wealth created by Greenland, to which must be added the mineral and petro-gas resources ", explains Mikaa Mered, professor of geopolitics and economy of the polar worlds at the Free Institute for the Study of International Relations (Ileri), questioned by France 24. "According to a US study of 2008, in terms of oil and gas resources, Greenland would have 31 billion barrels of oil equivalent (or 15% of Saudi Arabia's reserves) But at the same time, despite the explorations For 30 years, no commercially exploitable fields have been discovered, and this is Greenland's challenge: to find a concentrated vein so that it becomes commercially exploitable. "

"However the goal displayed by the Trump administration for this acquisition is not the exploitation of natural resources," warns the specialist of the polar worlds.

A historical geostrategic interest

The interest of the Americans is not so much economic as strategic. This is not the first time that the United States has tried to buy the Danish province to satisfy its interests. The US government has already tried twice to appropriate Greenland: in 1867, where he had tried to acquire it in a "lot" which also included Iceland and Alaska, and in 1947, with a proposal $ 100 million from President Harry Truman.

"If Greenland, from an identity, political and cultural point of view, is more oriented towards Europe because of its Danish colonization, from a geostrategic point of view, it is more of a North American mass. Americans, this mass is seen for a long time as a potential defense against a militarization of the North, "says Mikaa Mered.

"During the Second World War, Greenland was used as an East-West strategic relay by the United States and Canada for Europe.At the end of the conflict, US strategists developed the theory of the two Arctic pillars of the United States defense: the West pillar, Alaska held by the Americans, and the East pillar, Greenland, where the installation of the Thule military base was negotiated, so the interest is far from to be new to American decision-makers. "

The Arctic, a new goal for the United States

In recent months, the US administration seems to rediscover the strategic interest of the Arctic. In addition to the presidential visit to Denmark, Vice President Mike Pence is also scheduled to visit Iceland in early September to "expand business opportunities" and "enhance security in the Arctic region". The head of the American diplomacy, Mike Pompeo, participated in May in Finland in a meeting of the Arctic Council. His speech was considered a turning point in Washington's involvement in this part of the world.

"The United States is rediscovering its northern border in the Arctic," says Mikaa Mered. "During the Cold War, it was materialized and militarized, and with the end of the Cold War the focus on the Arctic changed, becoming environmental and scientific, while at the same time the Russians militarized this part of the world. their territory to make it commercially viable.In recent years, it has become a cause for concern in American think tanks. "

"In the Trump era, the commitment for environmental or scientific reasons is not important, especially in the electorate of the president, so we must find something else," says the researcher. "Donald Trump is refocusing on the strategic, the military, and the need for national identity."

China, which has a license for a rare earth mine in Greenland, is a perfect scapegoat: "China is typically the scarecrow Trump needs to justify a commitment.Russia is not enough", explains Mikaa Mered. "Trump's interest in Greenland can be seen as a blow to global hegemony in the struggle for influence with China."

A totally unrealistic proposition

If it turns out that Donald Trump really wants to buy the island, he will have to convince the Greenlanders to go under the American tutelage. Since 2009, the island has a semi-autonomous status. He can decide at any time to become independent then, if necessary, to sell or to be attached to a country, explains Mika Mered. But local authorities as guardians have already firmly refused the scenario.

"Greenlanders do not want to go from one Danish tutelage to another, be it Chinese or American," recalls Mikaa Mered. And to conclude: "The scenario of a sale remains totally improbable."