Houses built in the rugged landscape of Nuuk, Greenland, are seen on March 12. The Danish self-redmenting territory was put under geopolitical spotlights while President Trump swore to acquire it.
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Joe Raedle / Getty images
Greenland will soon have a new government led by a pro -independence independence party – pointing out what could be a possible split in Denmark. Is it a victory for President Trump, who said on several occasions that he wanted To annex The island?
After all, Voters rejected The current Prime Minister of Greenland, Múte Egede, whose Inuit Ataqatigiit party arrived third in Tuesday polls. Egede insisted that Greenland is not for sale and he supervised the survey partly as a referendum on the apparently bellicose bullying of Trump, saying that the election was a “fateful choice”.
But observers say that the victory of the party of Demokraatit (democracy) of the center-right of Greenland, which won most of the parliamentary seats, with 30% of the votes, does not guarantee a rapid movement towards independence or the closer links with the United States
To begin with, the Demokraatit party was also very critical of Trump’s rhetoric, insisting that their island – the largest in the world – has the right to self -determination. The party leader and the next probable Prime Minister of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, described Trump to “threaten our political independence”.
The Demokraatit party also promotes an approach to meeting independence, with a progressive strengthening of the island’s economy, which is strongly dependent on fishing exports And Denmark’s direct subsidies, before doing it alone.
Meanwhile, Naleraq – another central right part – wants to accelerate independence. In the past, he has been more receptive to the American president and arrived second in the election. But it is not yet clear if he will be invited to join the new government or to be bypassed for a coalition between the Demokraatit party and the small parts.
The strategic importance of Greenland is developing, especially since a global warming could open new Arctic Shipping Roads in the coming decades. Only 950 miles from the North Pole, the United States operates Pituffik Space Base There, a key installation for monitoring the anti -missile defenses. In addition, as Trump has often pointed out, Greenland would be rich in rare earth minerals.
The United States wants access to Greenland resources to help break American dependence on China, which has a quasi-monopoly on certain critical elements used in the technology and defense industries. But mining in Greenland is difficult, with a lack of infrastructure, a severe climate and a decline in local communities.
Almost no one in Greenland wants to be part of the United States
A opinion poll Posted in January has shown that a crushing number of Greenlanders promotes independence. The survey showed that 84% wanted independence from Denmark, while 45% said they only wanted it if it does not harm their standard of living. Only 9% said they did not want Denmark independently and that 6% were favorable to becoming an American state.
A key message from Tuesday’s vote is addressed to Trump, according to Ulrik Pram Gad, principal researcher at the Danish Institute for Strategic Studies: “If (he) had an idea that his invitations and threats … would be welcomed … He had a bad difficulty.” Instead, says GAD, the results indicate that the Greenlanders “are repulsed and more reluctant to engage with the United States”
Mark Nutall, professor at the University of Alberta and a affiliate professor at Greenland Climate Research Center, is suitable, saying that “you might say that the results of the recent elections indicate a firm rejection of American territorial ambitions”.
As for independence, it will be a little more a cautious approach, “he says. “Many in Greenland think:” Well, we would like to be independent, but we must guarantee a very solid base, in particular the economic foundation. “”
This feeling is taken up by Hans Jensen, a mining frame that is Danish but working in Greenland for decades.
“Independence will not happen anytime soon,” he said.
But, Jensen adds: “The Greenlanders are not interested in becoming an American state. This is what the elections have shown – by making the biggest party democrats.”
Bread and butter problems predominated on international policy
Despite international attention recently paid to Greenland and all independence speeches, most of the country’s 56,000 people focus on the type of bread and butter problems that are above all in the spirit of voters all over the world, according to Jeppe Strandsbjerg, associate professor at the Royal Danish Defense College.
“Many people (want to have) improvements in the education system, health system improvements,” he said. These problems are “more present in the electorate than the problems on which we usually concentrate in the United States”
