Greenlanders have a saying, “Nothing about us, without us.” This sentiment springs from long experience, from Eric the Red fleeing Iceland to traders and whalers seeking Arctic riches to Scandinavian missionaries and colonizers. Then in 1933, a decision of the League of Nations Permanent Court of International Justice ensured that the world’s largest island would be in the Danish realm.

During World War II, when Denmark was occupied by Nazi Germany, the United States concluded an agreement with the Danish envoy in Washington to construct and operate military installations in Greenland. In 1946, President Truman offered to purchase Greenland. Denmark refused.

Why would the United States want Greenland? At the dawn of the Cold War there were strategic advantages that today are even more evident. Greenland can enhance the United States’ eyes on the Arctic, its passages and its resources. With Russia’s growing Arctic militarization and China’s polar ambitions, Greenland is again in the sights of American foreign policy.

At the same time, in Greenland’s capital Nuuk, there is a Department of Independence, and a Constitutional Commission has been at work. Although still within the Danish realm, there are Greenland government representations to foreign capitals and international organizations. The U.S. has reopened its consulate in Nuuk, supporting dialogue and cooperation.

But Greenland faces a double-edged sword: climate change. The rapidly changing climate is yielding retreating sea ice, which brings the promise of enhanced maritime access for the coastal population. And retreating land ice reveals more usable territory. But with this thaw comes stronger and more damaging storms, ice sheet “tsunamis” and long frozen toxins released into the environment, some a legacy of American Cold War military installations.

Climate change spawns sometimes unpredictable natural hazards that will affect the United States’ northernmost military installation. The U.S. Space Base at Pituffik, previously the World War II Thule Air Base, supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance missions. At the renaming ceremony in 2023 — from Thule to the Greenlandic name Pituffik — U.S. Ambassador Alan Leventhal observed “We recognize the important role this installation has played in ensuring our countries and all of North America have remained safe and secure.” In this context at least, the U.S. national interest and a common interest are aligned.

Greenland is also rich in rare earth minerals that are critical to the global effort to transition away from a fossil fuel-based energy economy. Demand for rare earth minerals, critical materials in the manufacture of electric vehicles, wind turbines and batteries, currently outstrips supply. China, Australia, the European Union and others covet those deposits.

From Greenland’s perspective, monetizing such resources could replace Danish economic aid and thus support progress toward independence. But rare earth minerals are often co-located with uranium, the mining of which has been prohibited in Greenland by law since 2021. As a result, there are concerns due the potential for damage to Greenland’s precious fisheries from mining effluent, and accessing these mineral deposits remains controversial.

Global competition for resources and the strategic imperatives of Arctic and non-Arctic states are combining with climate change to exacerbate regional tensions. Yet, the Arctic remains home to vibrant Indigenous communities, including all of Greenland, who rightly insist “Nothing about us, without us.”

Geopolitics and resource competition notwithstanding, their goal is to foster and thrive in a harmonious Arctic. This is a delicate balance that could be tipped by the exposure of infrastructure and populations to natural and technological hazards.

The United States can support Greenland as she seeks to strengthen the capacity to adapt and respond to these challenges. This will be essential to promoting stability in the region. To achieve the American foreign policy goal of Arctic access and regional order, Greenland must be treated as a partner, not a prize.