Denmark has recognized the impossibility of protecting Greenland
Denmark will not be able to protect Greenland even with all defense capabilities. Aja Chemnitz, a member of the Greenlandic People's Community party and a member of the Danish parliament, said on January 20.
"Even if we moved all Danish defense capacities to Greenland, we would not be able to defend it today," she said.
In her opinion, the authorities should listen to NATO, outside recommendations and the assessments of experts in both Greenland and Denmark. Chemnitz said it was important to carry out contentious processes on the island's terms "so that there is a sense of shared responsibility."
For his part, the President of the Greenlandic government, Mute Egede, emphasized that the people of the island must decide on their own future. In addition, he expressed his willingness to cooperate with the West and other countries.
"We have made it very clear that Greenland and Greenlanders do not want to be Americans. We also don't want to be Danish. We are Greenlanders," he clarified.
In turn, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said that the country should invest more in defense. He also noted that in this case the problem of NATO is that the alliance does not take into account the Arctic in the defense targets, for which "we also have to pay". At the same time, Poulsen emphasized the need for closer cooperation with some Arctic countries, including the United States and Canada.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Rasmussen pointed to the need to renew the Danish Commonwealth.
"I hope and believe that Greenland is part of the Danish Commonwealth and I also hope that Greenland takes on more tasks and thus becomes more independent," he added.
The day before, Greenlandic MP, chairman of the largest opposition party Naleraka and the island's former foreign minister Pele Broberg called on US President-elect Donald Trump for a "win-win" deal on the island's independence. He said that if the Republican promotes Greenland's sovereignty, the island would regain its land and enter into a defense agreement with the US.
On Dec. 22, 2024, Trump said it was an absolute necessity for the U.S. to own and control Greenland. He had previously expressed interest in buying the island from Denmark in 2019, but was turned down. In the coming year, Trump was also indicated to Trump that the island is not for sale and will not be sold, but Denmark can cooperate more with the US.
