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Trump's renewed interest in Greenland lacks respect, says prime minister
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 10, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 10, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Greenland's PM criticizes Trump's renewed interest in acquiring the island, emphasizing respect and autonomy. 85% of Greenlanders oppose US acquisition.
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has not treated Greenlanders with respect since expressing his renewed interest in acquiring the vast, mineral-rich Arctic island, Greenland's prime minister was quoted on Monday as saying.
Trump reiterated his interest in acquiring the island during his address to Congress last Tuesday, painting a picture of prosperity and safety for the "incredible people" of Greenland, an autonomous territory of the kingdom of Denmark.
Trump reaffirmed that message in a Truth Social post early on Monday, writing: "We will continue to keep you safe, as we have since World War II. We are ready to invest billions of dollars to create new jobs and make you rich."
Greenland's Prime Minister Mute Egede told Danish public broadcaster DR in an interview aired on Monday: "We deserve to be treated with respect, and I don't think the U.S. president has done that recently since he took office."
"I think that the recent things the American president has been doing means that people don't want to get as close to (the U.S.) as they might have wanted in the past," he added.
"We need to draw a line in the sand and put more effort into (cultivating relations with) the countries that show us respect for the future we want to build," said Egede, in comments aired a day before Greenland holds a general election.
Egede has repeatedly said that Greenland, whose population is only 57,000, belongs to its people and that it should decide on its own future. He supports full independence for Greenland.
The island, whose capital Nuuk is closer to New York than the Danish capital Copenhagen, boasts mineral, oil and natural gas wealth, but development has been slow and its economy remains heavily reliant for now on fishing as well as annual subsidies from Denmark.
A recent poll indicated that 85% of Greenlanders do not wish to become a part of the United States, with nearly half seeing Trump's interest as a threat.
(Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Trump reiterated his interest in acquiring Greenland, describing it as a place of prosperity and safety for its people.
Prime Minister Mute Egede stated that Greenlanders deserve respect and criticized Trump's approach, suggesting it has affected U.S.-Greenland relations.
A recent poll indicated that 85% of Greenlanders do not wish to become part of the United States, with many viewing Trump's interest as a threat.
Egede supports full independence for Greenland and emphasizes that the island belongs to its people, who should decide their own future.
Greenland is rich in minerals, oil, and natural gas, but its economic development has been slow and heavily reliant on Denmark.
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