Greenland’s Minister for Housing, Infrastructure, and Justice, Naaja Nathanielsen, has said the renewed interest shown by Donald Trump in the territory is a “wake-up call” for Copenhagen. Nathanielsen said that they had been asking for closer ties with both the EU and the US for many years, but the attention they have been looking for is now only materializing.
Her comments came after Prime Minister Mute Egede said Greenland had begun talks with the US, which wanted closer ties and opportunities for mining cooperation. Egede did not, however, entertain the possibility of a US takeover, a scenario raised by Trump’s controversial comments suggesting military intervention.
According to Nathanielsen, “international media have been eager to cover Greenland’s mineral resources and historical injustices such as the forced contraceptive scandal and forced adoptions,” while the Danish press was relatively unmoved. The case of the forced contraceptives in which over 4,500 women had IUDs inserted without their consent had been well reported abroad but not within Denmark.
Nathanielsen saw the renewed global attention, fuelled by Trump’s interest, as an opportunity to press Denmark to address these historical wrongs. She called on Denmark to take responsibility for past abuses, especially the IUD scandal and adoptions, and ensure justice for the victims.
Greenland has been working with the US on mineral exploration under an agreement signed in 2019, which is set to expire soon. Nathanielsen believes that renewed interest from the US will lead to new agreements and funding for further development of Greenland’s natural resources.
