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<\/p>\nRabia Mayet | rabiamayet@radioislam.co.za<\/p>\n
22 January 2026<\/p>\n
2-minute read<\/p>\n
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Strategically located in the Arctic, and with an abundance of rare metal resources under its ice, it is no surprise that Greenland is once again in the news.<\/p>\n
In this 4th<\/sup> Industrial Revolution, China is currently in the lead for rare metals that are used in devices like cell phones and computer chips.<\/p>\n The semi-autonomous region of Greenland, whose foreign policy is largely controlled by Denmark, has a population of around 60\u00a0000, most living in the South of the country.<\/p>\n Deen says that the Trump administration views the world with \u201cmercantilist perspective\u201d that controls this \u201csphere of influence\u201d as empires did in the \u201870\u2019s and \u201880\u2019s, with Russia dominating Europe, China holding Asia, and the US wielding power over North America. Being situated close to both Canada and Russia, Trump plans to integrate Greenland as a state thus undermining state sovereignty.<\/p>\n This plan to do to the first world what has been happening in the third world for centuries has caused much consternation.<\/p>\n Media coverage focuses mainly on the Trump administration attempting to \u201cchange the world order as it is currently being played out,\u201d rather than on Greenland itself and how its people think of it. Despite negativity towards the Trump administration, far-reaching consequences like how it is playing out in Venezuela with the capture of its president, and how it ties into China\u2019s interest in Taiwan, is now becoming apparent. Trump\u2019s masterful ability to divert attention from domestic issues towards ratifying the status quo is \u201call ado about nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Trump\u2019s backing down can be noted in the markets which fell by 600 points in the last couple of days, with the world \u201cslowly but surely decoupling (in a sense) from the US.\u201d Deen says that the \u201cdying US empire\u201d can be seen from China entering into trade agreements with Canada, allowing it the ability to \u201cride US tariffs.\u201d<\/p>\n The most enduring outcome of the issue on Greenland is that once trust is broken, it is very difficult to rebuild, concludes Deen.<\/p>\n