Did he really say that?
Yes, he did. The Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen (Demokratiit) firmly stated at the press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (Socialdemokratiet, S) that Greenland chooses Denmark over the USA.
That Greenland chooses the Danish kingdom and is not just part of it, but actively chooses it in the current situation, and that Greenland not only chooses Denmark but also the EU and NATO. That Greenland is not for sale, that Greenland does not want to be American, and that Greenland and Denmark stand together. Come together, walk together.
Thus, he set the stage for the meeting at the White House between Vice President JD Vance and Danish Lars Løkke Rasmussen (Moderaterne, M) and Greenlandic Vivian Motzfeldt (Siumut).
It was a signal stronger than most at Christiansborg had hoped for after many mixed signals from Greenlandic politicians in recent days. Both in the government, Naalakkersuisut, and in the Greenlandic parliament. There has been flirting with the USA, there has been scolding of Denmark, and the irritation over Greenland had become noticeable in Denmark. Also in the government.
Harder for the USA
According to sources close to Jens-Frederik Nielsen – and off the record, of course – he has been ready for some time to assert that Greenland in the current situation is part of the kingdom and intends to remain part of the kingdom. Not forever, but with the understanding that if there is a choice between Denmark and the USA, he chooses Denmark.
He just has the problem that his government finds it difficult to act collectively in the crisis Greenland is right in the middle of. His own party, Demokratiit, supports a slow separation, while a party like IA, led by former Prime Minister Mute B. Egede, has been somewhat inconsistent in its analysis. The party dialed down independence last year, but recently has dialed it back up. And Siumut, the old ruling party, has acted similarly.
Therefore, Jens-Frederik Nielsen needed to calm things down before he could fulfill Denmark’s wish to stand together. He made that promise at the Prime Minister’s Office after intense meetings between the Danish and Greenlandic governments. Some pressure can probably not be ruled out either.
It does not solve the geopolitical crisis Greenland is in the middle of, but it makes it harder for the USA to claim that Denmark and Greenland are not playing on the same field. It will probably still be attempted, but internally in Greenland, it is now clear where the Prime Minister stands. Next to Denmark. Not the USA.
It also did not solve the immediate crisis in Denmark, but it gives Lars Løkke a boost before the meeting in Washington Wednesday. And it provides a clear direction for Vivian Motzfeldt. A direction where she must act with Denmark. Not against it.
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