NUUK
\nGreenland, the Danish self-governing territory coveted by US President Donald Trump, votes Tuesday in legislative elections that could yield a timeline for independence, which is supported by a majority of the population.
\nTrump, determined to get his hands on the vast Arctic island \u201cone way or the other\u201d, tried until the last minute to influence the election, sparking astonishment, rejection, and, to a small degree, enthusiasm among the 57,000 Greenlanders. \u201cHe puts the focus of Greenland back in international relations, like everyone\u2019s focusing on it. S
\no in that way, it\u2019s good,\u201d said Hans Kaali Davidsen, a resident of Nuuk, the capital, under a glacial rainfall.But, he stressed, \u201cTrump himself, the way he\u2019s been handling his own politics and his own country and how everything\u2019s shaping up in the US — no, we don\u2019t want him.\u201d
\nThe lead-up of the election to choose the 31-seat parliament, called the Inatsisartut, was mostly marked by a debate on issues such as healthcare, education, and future ties with Denmark, which still controls foreign, defence and monetary policy.
\nGreenland\u2019s inhabitants — almost 90 percent of whom are Inuits — say they are tired of being treated like second-class citizens by their former colonial power. All the main political parties favour independence, but they disagree on the timeframe.
\nThe election result will define the balance of power between those who want to independence quickly — such as the nationalist Naleraq party, the main opposition faction — and those who prefer to wait until the island is financially independent, such as the two parties who make up the outgoing coalition, the left-green Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA) and social democratic Siumut.
\nThe island, covered 80 percent by ice, depends on its fisheries sector, which accounts for almost all of its exports, and annual Danish subsidies of more than $565 million, equivalent to a fifth of its GDP. The most impatient independence backers believe Greenland will soon be able to stand on its own thanks to untapped mineral reserves, including rare earths crucial to the green transition.
\nBut the mining sector is still in its embryonic stages, hampered by high costs due to Greenland\u2019s harsh climate and lack of infrastructure. Trump floated the idea of buying Greenland during his first mandate, in a bid swiftly rejected by Danish and Greenlandic authorities. Back in the White House, he has circled back on the ambition with greater fervour, refusing to rule out the use of force and invoking US national security.
\nLate Sunday, Trump invited Greenlanders \u201cto be a part of the Greatest Nation anywhere in the World, the United States of America\u201d. He promised in a post on his social network Truth Social to make them \u201crich\u201d. The most recent polling on the issue, published in January, shows 85 percent of Greenlanders are opposed to Trump\u2019s idea.
\n\u201cWe don\u2019t want to be American. He is so arrogant,\u201d 58-year-old Rene Olsen, a ship repairman, told media on Monday. Yet Trump\u2019s statements — described as \u201cunpredictable\u201d by outgoing Prime Minister Mute Egede — have sent a jolt through election campaigns. Naleraq\u2019s nationalists say his remarks give them leverage ahead of independence negotiations with Denmark.
\n\u201cTrump\u2019s message is indeed a positive one, since it provides a safer and more stable ground for Greenland\u2019s move to independence,\u201d party member Juno Berthelsen told media. \u201cWe need the United States for national security and vice versa.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NUUK Greenland, the Danish self-governing territory coveted by US President Donald Trump, votes Tuesday in legislative elections that could yield a timeline for independence, which is supported by a majority of the population. Trump, determined to get his hands on the vast Arctic island \u201cone way or the other\u201d, tried until the last minute to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":466603,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-466572","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n