Greenlandic leaders reiterate that the territory is governed by international law and its Statute of Autonomy, and that its inhabitants elect their Parliament and Government, which “collaborates and will continue to collaborate with the United States and Western countries”.
The leaders of the five political parties represented in the Greenland Parliament (Inatsisartut) defended the right of the inhabitants of this autonomous Danish territory to decide their future in the face of threats from US President Donald Trump.
“The future of Greenland must be decided by Greenlanders. The task of determining the future of Greenland is carried out in dialogue with its people and on the basis of international law and the Statute of Autonomy. No other country can interfere in this”, highlighted the party leaders, in a joint statement on Friday.
The text emphasizes that this decision must be taken without pressure and without interference from other countries, and expresses the desire for an end to the contempt shown by the United States towards this Arctic island.
“We don’t want to be Americans, we don’t want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders”, underlines the declaration signed by the Prime Minister of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and also endorsed by Pelle Broberg, leader of Naleraq, the second largest party in Parliament and the one that demonstrated the greatest understanding towards the United States.
Greenlandic leaders reiterate that the territory is governed by international law and its Statute of Autonomyand that its inhabitants elect their Parliament and Government, which “collaborates and will continue to collaborate with the United States and Western countries”.
The declaration urges dialogue “based on diplomacy and international principles” and emphasizes that this is the path “between allies and friends”.
“We will continue to work to develop the possibilities of achieving security for our people”, the politicians emphasize in the text entitled “We are one people”.
“It doesn’t mean they own that land”
The document was released before Donald Trump said on Friday that he would not allow “Russia or China to occupy Greenland” and that he had decided to “do something” in relation to the Arctic island, “for better or for worse”.
Furthermore, he questioned Denmark’s sovereignty over the territory, stating that, although he admires the Nordic country, “the fact that they landed there with a ship 500 years ago does not mean that they own that land”.
The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has scheduled a meeting next week with his Danish counterpart, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, and with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greenland, Vivian Motzfeldt, to discuss the matter.
NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, also spoke on Friday with the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, about strengthening security in the Arctic.
The North American leader has worried his allies by refusing to rule out the use of military force to take this autonomous territory from Denmark, a member of NATO.
Trump says control of the resource-rich island is crucial to US national security, given the growing threat posed by Russia and China in the Arctic.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned that a US military strike to seize Greenland could mean the end of the 76-year-old Western military alliance.
