The White House has signaled a specific, actionable policy goal through its official communication with an AI-generated image depicting the acquisition of Greenland as a clear piece of strategic messaging. It is designed to normalize a radical geopolitical concept within the domestic political narrative. The detail is in the AI image mentioning the word territory, meaning the proposed status might not statehood, but another specific administrative category. If the goal is to designate Greenland as an unincorporated US territory, this model mirrors the status of Puerto Rico which would be a deliberate choice to follow a path that provides maximum federal control with minimum political integration.

The strategic rationale is rooted in great power competition and Arctic dominance. Control of Greenland grants the US a permanent, sovereign Arctic platform. It enables resource denial to adversaries. It expands northern missile defense and surveillance networks. The territory model is seen as the fastest legal mechanism to achieve these defensive and resource aims. For more context curious readers can read my prior articles:

“Could Trump’s Annexationist Talk Be Part Of A Great US Castling Strategy?”

“Trump Recalibrates US Networked Empire Into A Tariff-Based Order”

“US Continues Efforts To Absorb Greenland Into Its Sphere Of Influence In The Western Hemisphere”

Since mid-January there has been speculation in the press of how much Greenland could cost to acquire, and the amounts seem to be around $700 billion. Donald Trump has not explicitly stated he wanted to make Greenland an “unincorporated territory” using that specific legal term in public comments before today’s AI image. Although Trump has consistently emphasized the need for US “ownership” and “title” of the island, believing anything less as “unacceptable”. With his public statements and actions have centered on the desire to “buy,” “acquire,” “take control of,” or “get” Greenland, which he views as a national security necessity.

A bill was introduced in the US House of Representatives by Rep. Randy Fine in January 2026 titled the “Greenland Annexation and Statehood Act,” which would authorize the President to acquire Greenland as a territory of the United States with the goal of ultimately admitting it as a state. Indicating the intention among some of his allies to pursue statehood eventually. While the President has not explicitly used the term “unincorporated territory,” the “Greenland Annexation and Statehood Act” directly mentions making it a state, a process that usually involves a period as a territory, to transition from unincorporated territory to incorporated territory and finally a state, but it remains uncertain still which category will come to pass.

Some Trump advisers have indicated they do not want to make it a state but rather explore options like a “Compact of Free Association” or other forms of association, though the President’s personal stance has remained focused on outright acquisition In his public addresses, he has told the people of Greenland, “if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America” and pledged to “make you rich,” implying full integration and the benefits associated with joining the US.

This represents a doctrinal shift in US territorial policy, moving from a posture of status quo to one of active expansion. The target date of 2026 is likely aspirational but sets a timeline and it creates a perception for action and a metric for success. Even if physical acquisition is not achieved, the act of promotion advances several goals, but things are moving fast. It forces allies and adversaries to recalculate US intentions in the Arctic. It also tests the resilience of the international norm against territorial acquisition by coercion or purchase.

The broader implication is the potential revitalization of a colonial practice. Treating sovereign land as a transferable commodity, against the will of its inhabitants, marks a sharp departure from post-WWII norms, and would be akin to Puerto Rico’s predicament all over again. The territorial expansion of the United States was fundamentally a project of purchasing land from other states, most decisively through the Louisiana Purchase from France and the Alaska Purchase from Russia, which together added the vast core of the continent and a critical northern frontier.

This pattern was complemented by the Gadsden Purchase from Mexico and, most significantly, by treating sovereign Native American nations not as military conquests but as entities from which land could be acquired through treaties, effectively purchases, before subsequent seizure or broken agreements. While war and annexation played roles, the foundational mechanism for peaceful, legally-sanctioned growth and the avoidance of direct, prolonged conflict with major European powers was the strategic use of the federal treasury to buy sovereignty over continental space.

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Via https://www.globalresearch.ca/greenland-state-unincorporated-territory-puerto-rico/5913003