Canada and France opened consulates in Nuuk, Greenland on Friday – in what appeared to be a tacit show of support for the self-governing island in the face of US President Donald Trump’s Arctic ambitions.
Mineral-rich Greenland is an autonomous territory of NATO member Denmark. Trump sparked fears for the transatlantic alliance last month, when he announced his intention of taking control of Greenland – and for weeks refused to rule out the use of military force.
Although only around 30 French citizens are thought to live in Greenland, as per Euronews, Paris said Friday that the consulate was intended “to deepen existing cooperation projects with Greenland in the cultural, scientific and economic fields, while strengthening political ties with local authorities.”
The number of Canadian citizens living on the island of 55,000 people is likewise thought to be in the tens rather than the hundreds or thousands. But Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand described the consulate as a symbol of Canada’s long-term commitment to “stand together with the people of Greenland and Denmark,” according to the BBC.
Trump appeared to back down on Greenland after a conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland last month. The US president announced that he and Rutte had agreed on a “framework for a future deal” on Jan. 21 – without providing any details.
Given Trump’s insistence that only US rule can protect Greenland from Russia and China’s Arctic ambitions, this was something of an anti-climax. US Vice President JD Vance claimed on Thursday that Europe made more concessions on Greenland than is publicly known
“It’s so funny because the Europeans, they’re so friendly in private, and they’re willing to make a lot of accommodations, and then publicly they attack us,” Vance said – adding that suggestions of the US backtracking on Greenland were “all bogus,” as per the BBC.
With Friday’s inauguration ceremony, France became the first EU country to establish a consulate in Greenland.