NATO members have launched diplomatic outposts following US President Donald Trump’s renewed efforts to purchase the self-governing Danish territory
Amid a disagreement between the United States and fellow NATO members concerning the Danish-administered autonomous region, Canada and France have opened consulates in Greenland.
US President Donald Trump has recently restated his position that the strategically important island should be annexed by the US. He has pointed to alleged threats from Russia and China to the Arctic territory – claims that both Moscow and Beijing have denied. Denmark, together with a number of other European countries, has opposed the Trump administration’s campaign to acquire Greenland.
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand convened with her Danish and Greenlandic colleagues, Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Vivian Motzfeldt, in Nuuk on Saturday. While there, Anand inaugurated Canada’s new consulate in the Greenlandic capital.
According to a quote from the Foreign Ministry, the Canadian official confirmed Ottawa’s “support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Greenland and of the Kingdom of Denmark.”
The day before, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot formally took up the post of French Consul General in Greenland. A Foreign Ministry statement indicated that France is the “first European Union country to set up a consulate general” on the island, which is under Danish governance.
“France reiterates its commitment to respect for the Kingdom of Denmark’s territorial integrity,” the ministry stated.
In the previous month, Denmark initiated a military exercise in Greenland, with Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom contributing symbolic detachments of as many as 15 personnel from each nation.
Following reaffirmations of support for Denmark last month from several European leaders, such as French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Trump issued tariff threats against Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland.
The US president rescinded his threat soon after, stating he had concurred on the “framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland” with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte – though no specifics have been provided since.
Last month, Rasmus Jarlov, who chairs Denmark’s parliamentary defense committee, stated that Russia and China do not present a danger to Greenland – a view shared by EU Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas.
In a similar vein, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Washington is “well aware” that neither Russia nor China has any intentions concerning the island.