DONALD Trump has vowed the US will take control of Greenland “one way or the other” in a concerning speech to Congress.
Addressing a joint session of Congress in Washington, Trump said he had a “a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland.”
“We strongly support your right to determine your own future, and if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America,” he said about halfway through his 90-minute speech.
Trump also pledged to Greenlanders that America would “keep you safe, we will make you rich, and together, we will take Greenland to heights like you have never thought possible before.”
But in between the warm wishes the US President’s tone shifted, as he again made the case to Americans that US control of the Arctic landmass was crucial to its national security.
“We need Greenland for national security and even international security, and we’re working with everybody involved to try and get it,” Trump said
“One way or the other, we’re going to get it.”
In response, Greenland’s Prime Minister has declared “Greenland is ours” and cannot be taken or bought.
Mute Bourup Egede said the island’s citizens are neither American nor Danish because they are Greenlandic.
The future of Greenland will be decided by its people, Egede added.
The US has had a military base on the northwest coast of the island – now called the Pituffik Space Base – since the Second World War and the US has long viewed Greenland’s location as strategically key, as it offers the shortest route between North America and Europe.
The US has considered purchasing Greenland from Denmark at least twice before, including in 1867 and 1946, and Trump set out his desire to try and do so again in 2019, something which was shot down by the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen.
Since coming back into power, he has set out his intentions again to obtain control of the island.
Earlier this year, he refused to rule out military or economic action to seize Greenland.
Many in Greenland, a vast and mineral-rich island, are worried and offended by Trump’s threats to seize control of their homeland.
Asked about Trump’s comments, Denmark’s foreign minister said he did not think Greenlanders wanted to separate from Denmark in order to instead become “an integrated part of America”.
Lars Lokke 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.
Lokke 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 on 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.
