Where is Greenland and why does Trump want it?

US President-elect Donald Trump has repeated his volition to instrumentality power of Greenland, the Arctic territory controlled by Denmark.

Why is Trump talking astir this - and wherefore now?

Greenland, the world's largest island, is located successful the Arctic.

It is the world's astir sparsely populated territory. About 56,000 radical unrecorded there, mostly indigenous Inuit people.

About 80% of its territory is covered by ice, meaning astir radical unrecorded connected the south-western seashore astir the capital, Nuuk.

An autonomous territory of Denmark, it is besides location to Danish and US subject bases.

The system is chiefly based connected fishing. Large subsidies from the Danish authorities relationship for astir a 5th of GDP.

In caller years, determination has been accrued involvement successful Greenland's earthy resources, including mining for uncommon world minerals, uranium and iron. These whitethorn go much accessible arsenic planetary warming leads to immoderate of the crystal covering Greenland to melt.

Located geographically wrong North America, Greenland has been controlled by Denmark – astir 3,000km (1,860 miles) distant – for astir 300 years.

The land was governed arsenic a colony until the mid-20th Century. For overmuch of this time, it remained isolated and poor.

In 1953, it was made portion of the Kingdom of Denmark and Greenlanders became Danish citizens.

In 1979, a referendum connected location regularisation gave Greenland power of astir policies wrong the territory, with Denmark retaining power implicit overseas affairs and defence.

The US has agelong maintained a information involvement successful Greenland. After Nazi Germany occupied mainland Denmark during World War II, the US invaded Greenland, establishing subject and vigor stations crossed the territory.

After the war, US forces remained successful Greenland. Pituffik Space Base, formerly known arsenic Thule Air Base, has been operated by the US ever since.

In 1951, a defence statement with Denmark granted the US a important relation successful the defence of the territory, including the close to physique and support subject bases.

"If Russia were to nonstop missiles towards the US, the shortest way for atomic weapons would beryllium via the North Pole and Greenland," said Marc Jacobsen, an subordinate prof astatine the Royal Danish Defence College.

"That's wherefore the Pituffik Space Base is immensely important successful defending the US."

Trump is besides apt funny successful the mining imaginable crossed Greenland's immense landmass, Mr Jacobsen added.

"Today, of peculiar involvement are the uncommon world minerals, which person not yet been mined but are successful the confederate portion of Greenland. These are immensely important successful each kinds of technologies, from compartment phones to upwind turbines."

Trump has claimed that power of Greenland is indispensable to US nationalist and economical security.

Though the president-elect's rhetoric whitethorn seen unusual, for implicit a period a succession of US presidents person tried to summation power of Greenland.

"The US has tried a fewer times to propulsion the Danes retired of Greenland and instrumentality it implicit arsenic portion of the US, oregon astatine slightest to person afloat information tutelage of Greenland," said Lukas Wahden, the writer of 66° North, a newsletter connected Arctic security.

In 1867, aft buying Alaska from Russia, US Secretary of State William H Seward led negotiations to bargain Greenland from Denmark, but failed to scope immoderate agreement.

In 1946, the US offered to wage $100m (equivalent to $1.2bn; £970m today) for the territory, judging that it was captious for nationalist security, but the Danish authorities refused.

Trump besides tried to bargain Greenland during his archetypal term. Both Denmark and the Greenlandic authorities rejected the 2019 proposal, saying: "Greenland is not for sale."

Kuno Fencker, a subordinate of the Inatsisartut, the Greenlandic parliament, said connected Wednesday that helium didn't spot Trump's comments arsenic a threat.

Fencker, who supports Greenlandic independence, told the BBC that a sovereign Greenland could take to co-operate with the US connected defence.

But erstwhile Trump archetypal raised the thought of buying Greenland successful 2019, galore locals told the BBC they were opposed to the proposal.

"This is simply a precise unsafe idea," said Dines Mikaelsen, a circuit relation who was calved and raised successful Tasiilaq, eastbound Greenland.

"He's treating america similar a bully helium tin purchase," said Aleqa Hammond, Greenland's archetypal pistillate premier minister.

"He's not adjacent talking to Greenland - he's talking to Denmark astir buying Greenland."