On a par with Greenland
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is seeking support against Trump's Greenland claims. The Danish government wants to convey unity.
Denmark is doing what it can to free itself and Greenland from the foreign policy crisis. Donald Trump is keeping it going with his diligently expressed claims to the island, which officially belongs to Denmark. "We are not alone." The Danish government's current strategy is to make sure of this and at the same time show it to the outside world - not least as a message to the USA.
With this in mind, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was on a small European tour on Tuesday, with stops in Berlin, Paris and Brussels. Frederiksen was already sitting down with Chancellor Olaf Scholz at half past eight in the morning. At the previous joint press conference, the Danish Prime Minister did not mention Trump or Greenland directly. She said: "We are facing an uncertain reality that requires Europe to stick together." A stronger Europe is needed that can defend its interests.
Scholz's statement was hardly less cryptic: "Borders must not be moved by force," he said, and added in English, "To whom it may concern." This sentence in particular is seen by Danish media as a sign of full German support for Denmark.
The day before, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen had sounded similar when he met his EU counterparts in Brussels: "To push the boundaries is a red line. That is a very clear European position," he said after the meeting. He had no doubt that Denmark had full European support.
In addition, additional long-range drones and satellites are to strengthen the military presence in the Arctic and the North Atlantic. Motzfeldt also announced that more Greenlandic candidates will be sought for the Sirus sled patrol, a special military unit.
However, experts in Denmark do not expect these measures to have an impact on Trump's behavior, even though he bases his claims on military security. Most recently, he reiterated his claim to the strategically important, resource-rich island at the weekend: "I believe we will get Greenland because it really has to do with the freedom of the world," he said.
Greenland's government did not comment on this again at first - it had repeated in a press conference just last week what it had said from the beginning: Greenland was not for sale. "We are Greenlanders, we do not want to be Americans and we do not want to be Danish. The future of Greenland will be decided in Greenland," said Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede on Thursday. However, he stressed his country's interest in close cooperation with the USA - and at the same time made it clear that Greenland does not intend to sever ties with Denmark .
