Republicans introduce legislation authorizing Trump to negotiate potential purchase of Greenland
Greenland has record of more abortions than live births
Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a bill that would authorize President-elect Donald Trump to enter into negotiations to purchase Greenland immediately after taking office.
Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., introduced the "Make Greenland Great Again Act" on Monday. The legislation authorizes Trump to "enter into negotiations with the Kingdom of Denmark to secure the acquisition of Greenland by the United States." The legislation requires Trump to "transmit to the appropriate congressional committees the agreement, including all related materials and annexes," within five days of securing it.
The measure gives Congress a 60-day window to review the agreement once it's secured. If Congress doesn't issue a joint resolution of disapproval within that window, then the agreement executed will take effect.
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Trump floated the idea of making Greenland part of the U.S. in a statement announcing Ken Howery as his pick to become U.S. ambassador to Denmark.
"For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity," Trump declared.
Danish and Greenlandic leaders have pushed back on Trump's quest for Greenland.
Last week, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said that Greenlandic Prime Minister Múte Egede said, "Greenland is not for sale and will not be in the future either."
"Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders," Frederiksen said in an interview with Danish broadcaster TV 2, as quoted by Politico. "On one hand, I am pleased regarding the rise in American interest in Greenland. But of course, it is important that it takes place in a way where it is the Greenlanders' decision, what their future holds."
The official website of Greenland notes that Trump's previous suggestion that the U.S. was interested in buying the island, issued during his first administration, was "blankly rejected by the Greenlandic and Danish governments." However, a poll of 416 residents of Greenland conducted by Patriot Polling from Jan. 6-11 released Sunday suggests a majority of respondents (57.3%) favor joining the U.S., while 37.4% oppose it.
As explained by Encyclopedia Brittanica, Greenland's home-rule government is responsible for most domestic affairs, although it remains part of Denmark. Greenland, which has an estimated population of 56,800 as of 2024, is located just off the East Coast of Canada and is surrounded by the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans.
Abortion statistics compiled by William Robert Johnston, co-author of the "Abortion Worldwide Report," show that Greenland had the highest abortion rate in the world in 2023, with 100.71 abortions taking place for every 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 39. Greenland also had more abortions than live births in 2023, with 716 live births and 1,034 abortions recorded.
The number of abortions in Greenland has consistently exceeded the number of live births every year since 2012. According to the pro-abortion Center for Reproductive Rights, Greenland allows abortion for any reason within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
French Guiana, where there were 60.64 abortions per 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 39, was the country with the second-highest abortion rate in 2023. Other countries with high abortion rates in 2023 include Guadeloupe (56.60) and Martinique (44.15). Unlike Greenland, these countries had more live births than abortions.
On the other hand, countries with the lowest abortion rates in 2023 include: Brazil (0.06), Poland (0.07), Colombia (0.28) and Mexico (0.52). While the United Arab Emirates is listed as having the lowest abortion rate in the world (0.01), the data for that country comes from 2021. Like the UAE, several additional countries included on the list do not have updated statistics on abortion.
The U.S. is ranked in the middle when it comes to the abortion rate, with 16.63 abortions per 1,000 women in 2023.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
