The cosmetics billionaire behind Trump's Greenland strategy
Ronald Lauder, the 81-year-old heir to the Estée Lauder cosmetics empire, has emerged as a key figure behind US President Donald Trump's renewed push to acquire Greenland, according to former National Security Adviser John Bolton.
Bolton revealed that it was Lauder who first planted the idea of purchasing the semi-autonomous Danish territory in Trump's mind during his first presidency in 2018. "Trump called me down to the Oval Office," Bolton told The Guardian. "He said a prominent businessman had just suggested the US buy Greenland."
From cosmetics to geopolitics
Born into New York's business elite in 1944, Lauder has built a career spanning corporate leadership, diplomacy, and strategic investment. The youngest son of cosmetics pioneer Estée Lauder, he joined the family business at 20 and served in various executive roles, including Chairman of Clinique Laboratories.
His public service includes a stint as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and NATO policy from 1983 to 1986, followed by his appointment as US Ambassador to Austria under President Ronald Reagan. He also made an unsuccessful bid for New York Mayor in 1989.
Lauder stepped down from Estée Lauder's Board of Directors in January 2025 but remains Chairman of Clinique Laboratories. He currently serves as President of the World Jewish Congress and operates the Lauder Foundation across 13 nations.
Strategic investments in the Arctic
Since directing Trump's attention to Greenland, Lauder has been quietly building business interests in the territory. Corporate records from Denmark reveal investments through a firm with a New York address, including stakes in Greenland Water Bank, a boutique drinks company.
His business partner, Jørgen Wæver Johansen, is a local political party branch head married to Greenland's Foreign Affairs Minister, Vivian Motzfeldt. Lauder has also invested in Greenland Development Partners, a Delaware-registered consortium that has bought into the Greenland Investment Group.
This group has expressed interest in bidding for a major hydropower project at Lake Tasersiaq, Greenland's largest lake, highlighting the strategic nature of these investments.
Defending the Greenland strategy
While critics mocked Trump's 2018 Greenland proposal, Lauder publicly defended the concept. Writing in the New York Post, he argued: "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."
Lauder positioned himself as a potential intermediary between the United States and Denmark, leveraging his business relationships in Greenland to advance American interests in the region.
Academic concerns over influence operations
Danish academics have expressed concern about Lauder's activities. Marc Jacobsen from the Royal Danish Defence College warned: "We should not be naive. What matters more is gaining access to the Greenlandic elite and shaping the narrative that the US is a better partner than Denmark."
Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard of the Danish Institute for International Studies added: "There is reason to be on guard, especially when it involves a man like Ronald Lauder."
Current tensions escalate
Trump reiterated this week that the US "needs" Greenland and cannot rely on Denmark to protect the strategically vital island. His comments followed high-stakes meetings between US, Danish, and Greenlandic officials that revealed fundamental disagreements about the territory's future.
European countries have responded by deploying military personnel to Greenland, with Denmark announcing plans for a "larger and more permanent" NATO presence. EU nations have warned that any US military action against a NATO territory could end the alliance.
Both Greenland and Denmark maintain the territory is not for sale and have condemned threats of force as reckless. The dispute highlights the complex interplay between business interests, diplomatic relationships, and strategic competition in the Arctic region.