A senior U.S. official has outlined a strategy that highlights Greenland’s seafood industry as a key element in American efforts to counter China’s expanding global influence. Tom Dans, former Treasury official under President Donald Trump and current head of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission, has advocated for the United States to take control of Greenland’s seafood production to restrict Chinese access and support the revival of the American food industry.

Greenland’s economy heavily depends on seafood exports, which constitute over 90 percent of its total exports and provide employment to roughly 15 percent of the local workforce. The island’s primary marine products include shrimp, which accounts for about half of the seafood exports, along with halibut, cod, snow crab, and mackerel. China ranks as Greenland’s second-largest export market. In the fiscal year ending in April, Greenland exported approximately $62.3 million worth of seafood to China, with the majority consisting of shrimp and other frozen fish products.

Dans’ comments, reported in a recent interview, emphasize the notion of the United States “cutting out the middleman” and supplying domestic demand directly, using the well-known North American restaurant chain Red Lobster—famous for its “Endless Shrimp” promotion—as a symbolic example. Red Lobster, which filed for bankruptcy in 2024, partially attributes its financial struggles to the all-you-can-eat shrimp offer that proved unsustainable in the long term. The promotion was subsequently discontinued but was briefly revived earlier this year following customer demand.

Beyond economic interests in seafood, Greenland holds strategic significance for the United States due to its mineral resources, including rare earth elements, and its location along emerging Arctic sea routes that link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. These factors have contributed to Washington’s intensified focus on expanding its presence in the region.

The proposal to increase U.S. involvement in Greenland—currently an autonomous territory of Denmark and a NATO ally—reflects broader geopolitical efforts to counterbalance China’s influence globally. Reports indicate that the U.S. administration under Trump expressed ambitions to assert control over Greenland, with public remarks pointing to a determination to “get it one way or another.”

While some view these moves primarily through the lens of economic competition and national security, they raise diplomatic sensitivities given Greenland’s ties to Denmark and the complex international dynamics in the Arctic. The United States’ interest in Greenland aligns with a broader strategy aiming to limit China’s access not only to technological resources but also to critical commodities and supply chains pivotal to global trade.