Just one in five Americans support Trump's efforts to acquire Greenland
- 14 January, 2026
- 16:16
Just 17% of Americans approve of US President Donald Trump's efforts to acquire Greenland, and substantial majorities of Democrats and Republicans oppose using military force to annex the island, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found, Report informs via Reuters.
The two-day poll, which concluded on Tuesday, showed widespread concerns over Trump's threats to NATO ally Denmark over Greenland, which has been a Danish territory for centuries.
US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are due to meet the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers at the White House on Wednesday, the day after Greenland's prime minister said his nation would prefer to remain part of Denmark.
Trump has said Greenland is vital to US security and that Washington must own it to prevent Russia or China occupying the strategically located territory - which is rich in mineral wealth - in the future.
White House officials have discussed various plans to bring Greenland under US control, including using military force or issuing lump-sum payments to Greenlanders as part of a bid to convince them to secede from Denmark.
Some 47% of respondents to the Reuters/Ipsos poll disapproved of US efforts to acquire Greenland, while 35% said they were unsure.
About one in five respondents in the poll said they had not heard of the plans to acquire Greenland.
The effort has come to the fore as Trump has stepped up efforts to dominate affairs in the Western Hemisphere. Earlier this month, he vowed to "run" Venezuela after ordering a military raid that captured the country's president.
Only 4% of Americans - including just one in 10 Republicans and almost no Democrats - said it would be a "good idea" for the US to use military force to take possession of Greenland from Denmark.
Some 71% thought it would be a bad idea, including nine in 10 Democrats and six in 10 Republicans.
About one in three Republicans said they weren't sure if it was a good or bad idea.
Denmark has warned that using military force would mark the end of NATO, the transatlantic defense treaty that has been a key plank in the world order since 1949.
Some 66% of respondents, including 91% of Democrats and 40% of Republicans, said they were worried US efforts to acquire Greenland will damage the NATO alliance and US relationships with European allies.