NUUK, Greenland Feb 6 (Reuters) - France and Canada will open consulates in Greenland's capital Nuuk on Friday, deepening Arctic ties amid rising geopolitical tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump reaffirmed his interest in acquiring the strategically located island.
The diplomatic expansion signaled commitments by the two nations to strengthen their Arctic presence and partnerships with Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory that has become a focal point due to Trump's assertion that U.S.
control of the island is a national security priority.
Trump's renewed push to acquire Greenland, where the United States already has its own consulate, has alarmed European allies and sparked debate about Arctic sovereignty and security.
Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand and Governor General Mary Simon will visit Greenland on Friday and attend the opening of Canada's consulate.
Anand is due to meet with Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt in Nuuk to discuss collaboration on Arctic security.
Canada announced its plans in December when Anand said the country would open consulates in Greenland and Anchorage, Alaska, as part of efforts to reinforce its presence in the Arctic.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has also pledged to boost Canada's military and security presence in the Arctic.
France, whose foreign minister is due to visit in the next few weeks, will be the first country from the European Union to open a consulate general in Greenland. Paris has just nine citizens living on the island.
"France reiterates its commitment to respecting the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark," the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced the plans for the consulate during his visit to Greenland last year in a show of solidarity after Trump expressed interest in acquiring Greenland.
Its new consul general, Jean-Noel Poirier, was previously in Vietnam and most recently in Libya and said the initial focus would be to listen to the needs of Greenlanders and focus on scientific and cultural initiatives.
"I am not afraid of the cold, the 20-hour nights. I was in Libya last year and we had some close calls. We were hit by mortar shells, but here I won’t need a bulletproof vest or a helmet like in Tripoli so there’s no problem," he told reporters.
(Reporting by Soren Jeppesen in Copenhagen and John Irish in Paris, editing by Sharon Singleton)
