Greenlanders awoke Wednesday to a message from US President Donald Trump, who said his administration supported the Arctic island’s right of self-determination and also welcomed its people into the United States.
Many in Greenland, a vast and mineral-rich island that is a semiautonomous territory of Denmark, are worried and offended by Trump’s threats to seize control of homeland, because he says the US needs it “for national security.”
“I also have a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland,” Trump told Congress during an address Tuesday. “We strongly support your right to determine your own future, and if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America.”
But Trump also added that his administration was “working with everybody involved to try to get it," referring to his wishes to acquire Greenland from Denmark, a longtime US ally.
“We need it really for international world security. And I think we’re going to get it. One way or the other, we’re going to get it,” Trump said.
Asked about Trump's comments, Denmark's foreign minister said Wednesday he did not think Greenlanders wanted to separate from Denmark in order to instead become “an integrated part of America.”
Lars Løkke Rasmussen sought to strike an optimistic tone, saying he believed that Trump's reference to respecting Greenlanders' right to self-determination was “the most important part of that speech.”
“I’m very optimistic about what will be a Greenlandic decision about this. They want to loosen their ties to Denmark, we’re working on that, to have a more equal relationship,” the minister said during a trip to Finland.
Løkke added that it was important that next week’s parliamentary elections are free and fair “without any kind of international intervention.”
Greenlanders will head to the polls Tuesday. Trump's recent comments about taking over the island have ignited unprecedented interest in full independence from Denmark, which has become a key issue during campaign season.
Appealing to Greenlanders directly, Trump said: “We will keep you safe. We will make you rich. And together we will take Greenland to heights like you have never thought possible before."
