Greenland has seemingly become an obsession for Trump - but he is not the only one.

11:29, Tue, Jan 20, 2026 Updated: 11:40, Tue, Jan 20, 2026

Donald Trump and Ronald Lauder

Donald Trump and Ronald Lauder (Image: Getty)

A cosmetics billionaire impacted Donald Trump's increasing threats to annexe Greenland, an investigation has revealed. Ronald Lauder, the sole heir to the Estée Lauder cosmetics company, has business interests in Greenland and was reportedly the first person to give Donald Trump the idea to annex the Danish territory.

John Bolton, Trump's national security adviser during his first term, claimed that Lauder "suggested the US buy Greenland". The businessman had known him for more than 60 years, and the two had been friends. When Trump won the presidency in 2016, Lauder donated $100,000 to the Trump Victory fundraising committee.

That same year, Lauder said he was helping Trump with "some of the most complex diplomatic challenges imaginable" - reportedly including the idea of Arctic expansion, reported The Guardian.

Lauder wrote for the New York Post: "Trump's Greenland concept was never absurd - it was strategic. Beneath its ice and rock lies a treasure trove of rare-earth elements essential for AI, advanced weaponry and modern technology. As ice recedes, new maritime routes are emerging, reshaping global trade and security."

But Bolton disagrees, claiming "it's all about his [Trump's] ego" as the president wants to be seen as a powerful real estate businessman. "I don't know who suggested using military force, because that didn't come up at all in 2018 or 2019," he said.

Speaking to the Express earlier this month, Barack Obama's former assistant secretary of state Frank Rose said that Trump does not need to invade Greenland for security purposes, as he already has the authority to enhance the military presence under the 1951 Defence of Greenland Agreement.

Trump himself admitted that he considers ownership a psychological success.

When asked by the New York Times why he needed to possess the territory, he said: "Because that's what I feel is psychologically needed for success. I think that ownership gives you a thing that you can't do, whether you're talking about a lease or a treaty. Ownership gives you things and elements that you can't get from just signing a document."

Ronald Lauder As American Ambassador In Austria. Vienna. 1986. Photograph By Nora Schuster.

Ronald Lauder served as the American Ambassador to Austria in from 1986 to 1987 (Image: Getty)

:It is unclear how the potential US takeover of Greenland might impact Lauder's business interests there. But since Trump first started discussing it, he has reportedly built up commercial interests in the island. In December, Danish outlets reported that Lauder was part of a group of investors, linked to a company based in New York, looking to acquire stakes in the region. Their plans reportedly include a project to export spring water from an island in Baffin Bay and to harness hydroelectric power from Greenland's largest lake to supply an aluminium smelting operation.

According to a quoted Greenlandic businessman: "Lauder and his colleagues in the investor group have a very good understanding of and access to the luxury market".

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To complicate things further, a leaked November 2023 letter from TechMet's head to Ukraine's president named Lauder as part of a consortium seeking to exploit Ukrainian lithium. Lauder said he had not discussed minerals with Trump but had raised the issue with US and Ukrainian stakeholders. As Republicans pushed for US access to Ukraine's resources, Trump became the most vocal supporter. Weeks after Lauder's Maga Inc donations, Washington and Kyiv signed a joint minerals deal that helped maintain Trump's backing for Ukraine after his infamous White House public clash with Zelensky.

Greenland seemingly became an obsession for Trump, and regardless of his motives, this threatens the future of the NATO alliance and the entire post-war framework between Europe and the US.