Greenlanders remain wary of US ties despite agreement

Many people in Greenland remain sceptical about relations with the United States, despite an agreement between the US, Greenland and Denmark that is due for final consideration in Greenland’s parliament on Monday, DR reports.

“I don’t think relations will improve as long as a certain man remains in power over there,” Nuuk shop owner Dorit Olsen told DR, referring to US President Donald Trump. She said she doubted the agreement would bring a definitive end to tensions, adding that what happens in practice may differ from what is written on paper.

Olsen said American customers at her shop often apologise for the US government’s actions towards Greenland. David Røgilds, another shop owner in Nuuk, said he had heard similar apologies. He said relations were no longer what they had been three or four years ago, and that many US visitors disagreed with Trump and his government’s position on Greenland.

Røgilds described January, when Trump repeatedly voiced his desire to take over Greenland, as a difficult period. There were fewer American tourists then, he said, while media attention and discussion of Greenland intensified.

Greenland’s foreign affairs minister, Múte B. Egede, said last week that considerable work would be needed to rebuild relations with the US. Sara Olsvig, a PhD in Arctic studies, said the view was shared by many Greenlandic politicians and residents. Some people were cautiously optimistic, she said, while others remained deeply sceptical.

Trump has continued to make statements about Greenland since the agreement was signed. Last week, he wrote that the US wanted to launch extensive exploration for oil, gas and minerals there. Greenland’s parliament began its final consideration of the agreement last Monday, and a majority is expected to approve it, possibly later on Monday.