Is Trump actually serious about trying to buy Greenland? His staffers are apparently unsure, too.


President Trump really has been exploring the idea of purchasing Greenland for weeks now, The Washington Post and CNN report, confirming The Wall Street Journal's Thursday scoop. Is he serious, though? Nobody seems to know.
"The presidential request has bewildered aides, some of whom continue to believe it isn’t serious, but Trump has mentioned it for weeks," the Post reports, citing two unidentified people with knowledge of the president's demand. "As with many of Trump’s internal musings, aides are waiting for more direction before they decide how seriously they should look into it." CNN says the White House counsel's office has looked into the idea, though its sources did not report what the counsel found or how hard it looked.
Buying Greenland from the Danes may not be practicable, but the idea isn't crazy or even new. U.S. Secretary of State William Seward — famous for "Seward's folly," also know as Alaska — showed interest in also purchasing Greenland in 1867. And in the Truman administration, Secretary of State James Byrne offered Danish Foreign Minister Gustav Rasmussen $100 million in gold for the barren, ice-covered island in December 1946, according to telegrams in the National Archives.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The offer "seemed to come as a shock to Rasmussen, but he did not reject my suggestions flatly and said that he would study a memorandum which I gave him," Byrnes wrote. It's not clear if Denmark ever formally replied, but in 1951 it upgraded Greenland from a colony to a territory and then granted it home rule in 1979.
In any case, Trump can name his price, if he's serious, but every deal must also have a willing seller, and, well...
Oh well. There are other islands in the sea.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Gandhi arrests: Narendra Modi's 'vendetta' against India's opposition
The Explainer Another episode threatens to spark uproar in the Indian PM's long-running battle against the country's first family
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
How the woke right gained power in the US
Under the radar The term has grown in prominence since Donald Trump returned to the White House
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Codeword: April 24, 2025
The Week's daily codeword puzzle
By The Week Staff
-
Musk vows DOGE pullback as Tesla profits plunge
Speed Read The Tesla SEO says he will soon step back from government matters to devote more time to the company
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
IMF sees slump from tariffs, Trump tries to calm markets
Speed Read The International Monetary Fund predicts the U.S. and global economies will slow significantly due to the president's trade war
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
DHS chief Kristi Noem's purse stolen from eatery
Speed Read Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's purse was stolen while she dined with family at a restaurant in Washington, D.C.
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Trump stands by Hegseth amid ouster reports
Speed Read The president dismissed reports that he was on the verge of firing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over a second national security breach
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Hegseth reportedly shared war plans in 2nd group text
Speed Read The defense secretary sent information about an attack in Yemen to a Signal group chat that included his wife and brother
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Judge threatens Trump team with criminal contempt
Speed Read James Boasberg attempts to hold the White House accountable for disregarding court orders over El Salvador deportation flights
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador refuses to return US deportee
Speed Read President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador said he would not send back the unlawfully deported Kilmar Ábrego García
By Peter Weber, The Week US