Greenland’s newly elected Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen firmly rejected US threats to take control of the Arctic territory on Sunday, just days after taking office.
“Let me be clear: the US will not get Greenland. We do not belong to anyone else. We determine our own future,” Nielsen wrote on Facebook.
Since taking office, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to bring Greenland under US control, arguing that the resource-rich island of around 57,000 people is of strategic importance for the United States.
Nielsen advised a calm response to the threats. “We should not react out of fear. We should react with calm, dignity and cohesion,” he said.
It must be made clear to Trump that Greenland belongs only to its inhabitants, he wrote. “That’s how it was yesterday. That’s how it is today. And that’s how it will be in the future.”
Nielsen’s centre-right Demokraatit (Democrats) won the parliamentary election on March 11 following an election campaign overshadowed by Trump’s interest in Greenland. Nielsen now leads a broad coalition between Demokraatit and three other parties.
Greenland officially belongs to the kingdom of Denmark but decides on most of its political matters independently. However, foreign affairs and defence are run by the government in Copenhagen.
Independence from Denmark has been a topic for decades – and one that has been greatly stirred up by Trump’s remarks.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen plans to travel to Greenland on Wednesday to strengthen the island’s ties with Denmark. She is also scheduled to meet with Nielsen during her visit.
Frederiksen said in a statement that she has the greatest respect for the way the people of Greenland are dealing with the pressure on their country, adding that it was a situation that called for unity.