Greenland leaders reject US push for control in blunt joint statement

Independent.co reports that Greenlandic party leaders have unequivocally dismissed Donald Trump’s repeated proposals for the United States to take control of the Arctic island, saying in a joint statement on Friday night: "We don't want to be Americans, we don't want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders." The leaders reiterated that "Greenland's future must be decided by the Greenlandic people" and added: "As Greenlandic party leaders, we would like to emphasize once again our wish that the United States' contempt for our country ends." Mr Trump had again said he wanted to "make a deal" to acquire Greenland and argued that if the US did not own it then Russia or China would seize control; he warned, "If we don't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way." The White House said it is considering a range of options, including using military force.

The statement was signed by Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Pele Broberg, Mïte B. Egede, Aleqa Hammond and Aqqalu C. Jerimiassen. Officials from Denmark, Greenland and the United States met on Thursday and will meet again next week to discuss the renewed push. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has warned that an American takeover of Greenland would mark the end of NATO.

Greenland, a semi-autonomous region of Denmark, is the world’s largest island with a population of around 57,000 and does not have its own military; defence is provided by Denmark, whose military is dwarfed by that of the US.

Key Topics

World, Greenland, Donald Trump, Denmark, Nato, Jens-frederik Nielsen