Trump, 80, Makes Unhinged Claim That He Seized Greenland

Alex Wong / Getty Images Donald Trump brazenly lied about having seized Greenland during a Friday midterm campaign rally in Syracuse, New York.

The 80-year-old president said he created a “soon-to-be very prosperous Arctic,” referring to his administration’s interest in the region’s oil and critical mineral resources.

“I got Greenland,” the president claimed.

“I hope you’re happy about that.

Remember they all said, ‘Oh, he’s never going to get it.’ No.

We got Greenland.

And for the right price, you know what we paid.

Right? Zero.” His boast seemed to be a dramatic distortion of what really happened, which was the signing of an agreement that expands U.S. military access to the island.

The U.S., Greenland, and Denmark reached an agreement on Sept.

22 to amend and supplement the 1951 agreement governing Greenland’s defense, mostly expanding U.S. military access and restricting sensitive investments by non-allied countries.

It doesn’t automatically grant the U.S. mining or drilling rights, nor does it transfer ownership to the U.S.

But it could encourage resource development by reducing political uncertainty, according to Greenland Energy CEO Robert Price.

Despite Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen saying the agreement recognizes “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark and the Greenlandic people’s right to self-determination,” Trump nevertheless portrayed the treaty supplement as an acquisition.

Trump may be conflating an aspect of the agreement that merely expands American influence over who can access the island’s resources.