Why Trump's push for frigid Greenland is about icing out US adversaries

Amid rising U.S.-China tensions and Arctic militarization, President Donald Trump wants Greenland for its rare earth minerals and strategic defense.

The island is also a transfer point for communication cables that cross the Atlantic. European officials claim Russian "ghost ships" have been destroying such cables by dropping their anchors and dragging them across the ocean floor.

Greater control over the island would not only offer the U.S. the shortest ship route to Europe but also the opportunity to bolster its ballistic missile early warning system and place radar on the ocean floor to track the movements of Russian and Chinese ships.