Pro-independence leader rebuffs Trump’s plan to buy Greenland

Denmark’s self-governing Arctic island should not be controlled by foreign powers, its prime minister has said

Greenland’s pro-independence leader has rejected US President-elect Donald Trump’s proposal to buy the Arctic self-governing island from Denmark. 

Trump has revived his old idea of acquiring the mineral-rich territory as he prepares to assume the presidency on January 20. “Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our nation,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform recently, vowing to “protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside world.” 

Greenland’s prime minister, Mute Bourup Egede, who has been campaigning for the island’s independence, reiterated that Greenland should not belong to any foreign power. 

“Let me repeat – Greenland belongs to the people of Greenland. Our future and fight for independence is our business,” Egede wrote on Facebook on Tuesday. 

“While others, including Danes and Americans, are entitled to their opinions, we should not be caught up in the hysteria and external pressures that distract us from our path. The future is ours and ours to shape,” he added. Egede reaffirmed that his government is working towards Greenland’s eventual break with Denmark. 

A former Danish colony of around 57,000 people, the island has been a self-governing territory since 1979. In 2009, Greenland was granted the right to declare independence through a referendum.

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Trump first floated the idea of purchasing Greenland in 2019, when it was rejected by the local government and officials in Copenhagen. The president-elect’s son, Donald Trump Jr., made an unannounced trip to the island on Tuesday. “Greenland loves America and Trump!!! Incredible people with an equally awesome reception,” he wrote on X.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said that she welcomes US investment in Greenland, but stopped short of endorsing Trump’s renewed interest in the island. “The starting point of the government is very clear: the future of Greenland should be decided in Greenland. Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders,” she told TV 2. 

“The United States is Denmark’s most important ally. Today’s discussion does not change that,” the prime minister added. 

Trump has floated other bold foreign policy ideas, such as transforming Canada into America’s “51st state” and reclaiming US control over the Panama Channel. The leaders of Canada and Panama have rejected these proposals.