As US President Donald Trump continues to threaten seizing Greenland, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen on Tuesday said the residents and authorities should start preparing for a possible
military invasion.
“It’s not likely there will be a military conflict, but it can’t be ruled out,” Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a press conference in Nuuk.
Financial Review quoted him saying that the government will form a task force consisting of representatives of all relevant local authorities to help people prepare for any disruptions to daily life.
He further said that the government is working to distribute new guidelines to the population, including a recommendation to have enough food for five days stored in their homes.
Speaking in the European Parliament, Danish MEP Anders Vistisen rejected Donald Trump’s recent remarks that the United States should take control of Greenland for national security reasons.
“Let me put this in words you might understand: Mr President, fuck off,” Anders Vistisen said during the session.
Donald Trump has in recent days reiterated his long-standing view that Greenland is strategically vital to US interests, arguing that Washington needs greater control over the Arctic island to counter potential influence from Russia and China. He has also suggested that economic pressure could be used against European allies who oppose such moves.
Greenland is under “a lot of pressure” and “we need to be ready for all scenarios”, Mute B Egede, the island’s minister of finance and former leader, said at the same news conference on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Europe would have to respond if the tariffs are implemented and that there could be “major consequences” on both sides of the Atlantic.
“If a trade war is launched against us, which I cannot recommend, then we must of course respond. We would be forced to do so,” she said during a question and answer session in the Danish parliament. “I hope we do not get to that point. I hope that we succeed in convincing the Americans that this is not the path we should take.”
Greenland, whose population of 57,000 has expressed concern over Trump’s threats, reiterated that such pressure does not change its desire to assert sovereignty.
Trump has insisted that the mineral-rich island is vital for US “national security,” despite existing bases and security agreements with Denmark, a fellow NATO ally.
