Greenland: Why Is Trump So Worried About China’s Ships in the Arctic? |Taiwan Talks EP754

With the presence of “Chinese ships” at the center of security discussions over Greenland, is the Arctic becoming tomorrow’s South China Sea? Multiple NATO countries are sending troops to Greenland in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s repeated comments about needing the territory for the US’ security. As the polar ice caps melt, the Arctic Sea may soon become open year-round to global trade, resource extraction and the passage of military ships. Russia is the largest player in the Arctic, and it is investing heavily in its security infrastructure there. Over in the Indo-Pacific, China has played a similar role in the South China Sea. Is Trump correct to claim that Russia and China pose a threat in the Arctic? And how should Greenland and Denmark respond to Trump? In this episode, we discuss the latest Greenland developments, Trump’s foreign policy ambitions, the militarization of the Arctic and South China Sea, and what it means for the geopolitical future of the two regions.

*Recorded on January 16, 2026 at 11:00am Taiwan Standard Time

Host/Senior Producer: Yin Khvat
Consultant: George SJ Nee
Research Assistant: April Lin

Our guests:

Lai I-chung
Prospect Foundation President
Sana Hashmi
Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation Fellow
Mark Montgomery
US Navy Rear Admiral (Ret.)

Chapters:
00:00:00 - Comparing Arctic and Indo-Pacific
00:02:53 - Do China, Russia Control Chokepoints?
00:08:54 - Arctic, South China Sea Parallels
00:21:11 - What Options Does Greenland Have?





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