Greenland’s prime minister categorically ruled out joining the US and said the Arctic territory prefers to be in a union with Denmark, suggesting the island is putting independence plans on the back burner for now.
“We are now facing a geopolitical crisis, and if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, then we choose Denmark,” Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in Copenhagen on Tuesday. “We choose the Greenland we know today, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark,” he said.
Nielsen’s remarks come ahead of a high stakes meeting of Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Vice President JD Vance in Washington on Wednesday. The stated aim for the talks is to help defuse the administration’s renewed threats toward Greenland and begin repairing strained ties over the strategically important island.
The situation is “very serious,” Nielsen said, calling the current threats from the Trump administration to annex the island completely out of line.
Donald Trump is demanding to take control of Greenland, either through economic means or military force.
While independence from Denmark has long been debated in the land of 57,000 people, opinion polls have shown Greenlanders are overwhelmingly against the idea of joining the US. That concern was reflected in elections in March last year, when three out of four Greenlandic voters backed parties favoring only a slow move toward independence.
When asked at the press conference whether there should no longer be talks of independence from Greenland’s side, Nielsen said “right now is the time to stand together. Greenland stands within the Kingdom of Denmark and stands fully united in protecting the fundamental principles.”
The two countries aren’t alone in seeking to contain the Trump administration’s ambitions. A group of European countries, led by the UK and Germany, is discussing plans for a military presence in Greenland to show Trump that the continent is serious about Arctic security.
After a meeting with Rubio Monday night, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said he is optimistic that Europe can reach a “compromise” with the US over Greenland.
“Security in the North Atlantic and the Arctic can only be achieved multilaterally and jointly,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Tuesday. “Open questions will be cleared up amicably together according to international law and with joint responsibility for security in the North Atlantic.”
Germany is intensifying its efforts in the region, he told reporters Tuesday at a news conference in Berlin with European Union foreign-policy chief Kaja Kallas.
“It’s clear that we stand steadfastly behind the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Kingdom of Denmark and Greenland,” he said.
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