A bill seeking to make Greenland the 51st US state has been introduced in the House of Representatives, escalating a controversial push by President Donald Trump to bring the Danish territory under American control.
Trump claimed last week that the US must annex Greenland – an autonomous former Danish colony under Copenhagen’s sovereignty – to contain Russia and China, suggesting that the two countries would “take over”the island unless Washington did it first.
The “Greenland Annexation and Statehood Act,” introduced by Representative Randy Fine (R-FL) on Monday, would authorize the President to take “whatever steps necessary to annex or acquire Greenland,” and mandates a report to Congress outlining the steps required for its eventual admission as a US state.