Greenland must decide its future, Danish PM tells Trump

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told Donald Trump that Greenland must decide its own future.

The US president-elect caused an uproar in Copenhagen and Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, last week when he signaled that the US wanted to acquire the huge Arctic island, which is an autonomous territory of Denmark.

In a 45-minute phone call on Wednesday, Frederiksen told Trump that Denmark was ready to increase its responsibility for security in the Arctic.

She also echoed statements by Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede, who recently said that Greenland is not for sale.

Trump has not publicly responded to the call. However, he reposted on his TruthSocial account a 2019 poll showing that 68% of Greenlanders support independence from Denmark.

An independence referendum is believed to be imminent and Denmark has said it will respect any result.

When he was the last president, Trump said he wanted to buy Greenland. When Frederiksen called the proposal “absurd”, he abruptly canceled a trip to Denmark.

The Danish government said that in her phone call with Trump, Frederiksen also stressed that “Danish companies contribute to growth and jobs in the US and that the EU and the US have a common interest in increased trade.”

Last week, Trump threatened Denmark with high tariffs if the country did not give up Greenland.

The proposal has raised alarm among Danish industry leaders, as the US is Denmark’s second largest export market and any targeted tariffs would have a significant impact on the Danish economy.

On Thursday, Frederiksen will hold what Danish media have called a “crisis meeting” with business leaders, including the CEOs of beer giant Carlsberg and drugmaker Novo Nordisk, which makes popular US obesity and diabetes drugs.

It is also due to host an extraordinary meeting of the Foreign Policy Council with members from across parliament.

Greenlandic member of parliament Aaya Kemnitz said she was happy with Frederiksen’s line that any decision about Greenland should be made by Greenlanders.

“I have great confidence in the task of the Prime Minister and I also have great confidence in Egede. I think it’s important that they have a close dialogue,” she said.

Earlier this week, Egede said his government was ready to open a dialogue with the incoming Trump administration.

But opposition lawmaker Rasmus Yarlov said he did not approve of Frederiksen’s approach.

Writing to X, he said: “It is completely unacceptable for (Frederiksen) to renounce Denmark’s rights in Greenland and place sovereignty solely on (Greenlandic) self-government when talking to the President of the United States.”

Trump’s comments and his son’s visit to Greenland last week caused huge concern in Denmark. Faced with the prospect of angering what she has repeatedly called “Denmark’s closest ally,” Frederiksen weighed her words, stressing Greenland’s right to self-determination.

Hans Roeder, TV2’s political editor, said the fact Trump spent 45 minutes on the phone with Frederiksen showed that “this Greenland thing is really something that’s on Trump’s mind – it’s not just an afterthought “.