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Donald Trump’s claim in his address to Congress that the US will acquire Greenland “one way or the other” was widely condemned in Nuuk as “disrespectful” and was said to present an “unacceptable view of humanity”.
In his speech on Tuesday night, the US president was met with laughs, including from the vice-president, JD Vance, who was sitting behind him, when he said: “I also have a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland.”
Trump said if the Arctic island, which is part of the kingdom of Denmark, chose to become part of the US, it would be welcomed. “I think we’re going to get it [Greenland]. One way or the other we’re going to get it,” he said to laughs and applause.
Addressing Greenlandic people, he added: “We will keep you safe. We will make you rich. And together we will take Greenland to heights like you have never thought possible before.”
Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for natural resources, equality, business and justice, said the scenes showed a “fundamental lack of respect for us as a people, for our historical connection to these lands and for our democratic institutions”.
She said she was “not blind” to the potential for increased trade and cooperation, but “the absence of a respectful tone stands in the way”.
She said: “Hearing American legislators giggle over statements like ‘we are gonna get it one way or the other’ is disrespectful. I say no thank you to the idea of Red, White and Blueland. No thank you to the prospect of becoming an American state or some other form of American subsidiary.”
Nathanielsen said the US was “sending some very unclear signals” about who it considered allies and how it used its “enormous power”.
Using the Greenlandic name for Greenland, the prime minister, Múte Egede, said: “Kalaallit Nunaat is ours.” He wrote on social media: “We don’t want to be Americans, nor Danes; We are Kalaallit. The Americans and their leader must understand that. We are not for sale and cannot simply be taken. Our future will be decided by us in Greenland.”
Denmark formerly ruled Greenland as a colony and continues to control its foreign and security policy. Greenland goes to the polls on 11 March in a high-stakes general election that could prove pivotal in terms of its relationship with the US and how quickly it moves towards independence from Denmark.
According to an opinion poll commissioned by the Danish newspaper Berlingske in January, 85% of Greenlanders do not want Greenland to be part of the US.
Nathanielsen said she did not see Trump’s comments as a “reason to panic”, adding: “The speech is aimed at an American Republican audience and is intended to entertain and shock.”
But she added: “The handling of our strong neighbour will be an important issue for the upcoming Inatsisartut [parliament of Greenland] and Naalakkersuisut [government of Greenland] to deal with and I hope and believe that a majority of parties will create a common front and speak with one voice.”
She urged people to vote for a party “that is not naive about the American interests in our country”.
The finance minister, Erik Jensen, said: “It is terrible to see the view of humanity in the speech. The vice-president also laughs. It shows that they have an unacceptable view of humanity.”
The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, reiterated previous statements that the future of Greenland would be decided by the Greenlandic people, but said: “I hope as Danish prime minister that we can hold on to our commonwealth, because I believe that is to the benefit of all three countries.”
In another interview, she said Denmark and Europe had benefited from “very strong collaboration” with the US and that they would “do what we can to hold on to the Americans”.
She added: “It is important right now that we make ourselves as strong as possible, so that we can stand in our own right in a completely different way than before.”
