Greenlandic Top Politician On Trump: "You Cannot Own or Control, but Have a Partnership"

Les original artikkel på norsk.

The new US President, Donald Trump, has not abandoned the idea of American ownership and control over Greenland. In achieving this, he has previously not ruled out the use of military or economic force.

On the Greenlandic side, there are many who are putting their foot down. Among the key figures is Aaja Chemnitz (IA), Greenlandic MP and Chair of the Greenland Committee in the Danish Parliament, as well as the Chair of the Standing Committee of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region (SCPAR).

Recently, Chemnitz and Lisa Murkowski (R), US Senator for Alaska and Vice Chair of the SCPAR, launched the joint statement "Greenland and the United States: Partnership, Not Ownership."

“As legislators representing Greenland in Denmark and the United States, we see a better path forward. The US, like Denmark, should recognize that the future will be defined by partnership, not ownership. To ensure our alliance reaches its full potential, Americans must view Greenland as an ally, not an asset. Open for business, but not for sale,” they state.

“For us Arctic parliamentarians, it is important to stand together. Now, in these uncertain times, both in and around the Arctic, we need stability. I think that the people of the Arctic region deserve to feel safe and free and believe in democracy,” says Chemnitz to High North News during the Arctic Frontiers conference in Tromsø.

Eye-catching? Yes, of course!

“The appeal of Greenland is easy to understand. It is strategically located for defense, shipping, and more. It is also a storehouse for all sorts of minerals, the building blocks of society that will determine who leads – and controls – the industries of the future,” Chemnitz and Murkowski point out in the joint statement.

“Of course, a businessman turned president would be interested. But Greenland is not for sale. The question has been asked and firmly answered by the government of Greenland, Naalakkersuisut,” they continue.

The US can precisely strengthen its national security without changing Greenland's autonomy, the leader duo states.

Their certainty stems from their own experience as Arctic parliamentarians. They also cite the US military space base Pituffik (formerly known as Thule Air Station) on Greenland's northwestern coast as an example.

"Dialogue and cooperation can strengthen our ties; diplomacy can pave the way for a relationship and alliance that fulfills our mutual interests,” Chemnitz and Murkowski emphasize. 

Boundaries and openings

The Greenlandic top politician elaborates to High North News:

“There is no doubt about Greenland’s strategic location and its importance for the world and the USA. For me, it is important to say the following: Let's have a partnership, let's go quite concretely into how we can cooperate in various fields,” says Chemnitz and continues:

"You cannot own another country; you cannot control another country, but you can have a partnership with it. And the US is welcome to develop the cooperation with Greenland in many ways, both on rare earth elements and deeper defense cooperation, perhaps even a negotiation on how Greenland should be defended in the future."

The Greenlandic government is looking forward to discussing the development of business and defense cooperation with the US, said Vivian Motzfeldt, Greenland's Naalakkersuisoq (minister) for Independence and Foreign Affairs, earlier in January.

Engagement in the Arctic Council

The US should embrace Greenland's will for more cooperation, is Chemnitz's and Murkowski's clear recommendation.

Washington D.C. should also cultivate a greater understanding of the Arctic as a region where unilateralism neither contributes to triggering great opportunities nor solving complex challenges, they believe. 

“We work hard to ensure prosperity, peaceful and respectful collaboration, and protection of our people. We do so through international cooperation, including through the Arctic Council, which is the main Arctic cooperative governance body,” the duo states and continues:

“We call on continued support and engagement in the peaceful dialogue through the Arctic Council, and we look forward and support the incoming chairship of the Kingdom of Denmark and recognise the leading role of Greenland in the chairship.”

Greenland's Naalakkersuisoq Motzfeldt will take over the chairship from Norway on behalf of the Kingdom of Denmark in Tromsø on May 12th, according to the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Needs the US as a co-player

The Kingdom of Denmark will also have a new Arctic ambassador from Greenland, who will be the chair of the council's Senior Arctic Officials. 

The candidate will be nominated by the Government of Greenland, and then, with Faroese and Danish approval, appointed by the Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Russia's warfare in Ukraine still impacts the Arctic Council, but it's essential working groups have gradually resumed their activities.

The Danish Realm, spearheaded by Greenland, will nevertheless take over the significant task of keeping the council alive. In this work, cooperation with the United States will be essential.

Chemnitz is concerned with this matter as well:

“With regard to the upcoming chairship of the council, it is extremely important to ensure a good and close relationship with the USA, as the country is one of the biggest partners in the Arctic,” she points out. 

Solution-oriented

Various issues within the chairship (that is, between Greenland, Denmark and the Faroe Islands) will be resolved, the Greenlandic MP believes.

“I am sure that we can figure things out. We have been doing that for many, many years within the Kingdom of Denmark. And being a bridge builder between Greenland and Denmark is very important to me; I have been doing that for almost ten years, says Chemnitz and continues:

“It is of great significance to make sure that we have a good collaboration on the issues that we agree to address. Now, for example, a new partial agreement is being launched under the defense settlement [in the Kingdom of Denmark, ed. note] with a focus on the defense of Greenland.” 

Denmark's Ministry of Defense announced the new agreement on Monday evening last week.

It was negotiated in close collaboration with the Greenlandic and the Faroese governments and involves over DKK 14 billion in measures for three new Arctic ships, extra long-range drones, and strengthened satellite capacity, among other things.

Greenland and Alaska

“Let’s remember that the US portion of the Arctic – Alaska – shares more than lines of latitude with Greenland. Whether you’re in Nuuk or Nome, you will see and hear familiar words, a reflection of our Inuk and Iñupiaq peoples’ common history,” say Chemnitz and Murkowski.

“Alaska has the same advantages as Greenland, from strategic location to abundant resources. We can form the heart of this union throughout the 21st century and beyond,” they add.

Earlier in January, Murkowski referred to Trump's statements about Greenland as “offensive to the autonomy of the Greenlandic people” and urged him to turn his attention to precisely the US's own Arctic territory, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

“If it’s interest in the Arctic itself, I would suggest to President Trump that we need to invest in our own US Arctic. That would be the state of Alaska. So, let’s invest in our resources here, in our access to our resources, in our opportunities as an Arctic state,” said Murkowski.

Trump appears to have embarked on this after his re-entry to the White House, but without giving up on his notion of US expansion in the Arctic.

Peaceful ties

Carl Bildt, former Swedish Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, wrote on X on January 26 that the Kingdom of Denmark and the EU must prepare for a serious confrontation with Trump regarding Greenland. Are you worried it could come to a serious confrontation with Trump's US?

“No. I do not believe in a full-blown invasion of Greenland from the US side. But I think it is important to make sure that we do what we can to preserve the peace in the Arctic,” says Chemnitz to High North News. 

Along with Senator Murkowski, she offers the following prescriptive future analysis:

“The future does not require us to redraw the borders on that map but to work harder than ever across them. The respectful, consensus partnership is the only way to truly foster the ties that will bind Greenland and the United States together for the long haul.”

This article was originally published in Norwegian on Tuesday, January 28.