Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen has said that if Greenlanders were told “immediately” to choose a country, they would opt for Denmark over the United States.
“If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark,” Nielsen said.
“One thing must be clear to everyone. Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States. Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States,” he added.
Nielsen made the remarks during a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, in what observers described as his strongest and clearest response so far to renewed US interest in Greenland.
The comments come as US President Donald Trump has again proposed taking control of the island. Trump has said that, to protect against threats from Russia and China, it is necessary for the United States to have “ownership” of Greenland.
The White House has suggested buying the territory and has not ruled out the possibility of using force to bring it under US control.
Asked later on Tuesday about Nielsen’s statement, Trump said: “That’s his problem, I don’t agree with him… This is going to become a big problem for him.”
Greenland is a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark with its own government. Denmark is a member of NATO, and Prime Minister Frederiksen has warned that the use of military force would mark the end of the transatlantic defence alliance.
Despite being the world’s most sparsely populated territory, Greenland’s location between North America and the Arctic makes it strategically important for early-warning systems in the event of missile attacks and for monitoring naval movements in the region.