Hundreds in Greenland braved near-freezing temperatures, rain and icy streets to march in a rally in support of their own self-governance<\/b>
\nGreenland: Hundreds of people in Greenland\u2019s capital braved near-freezing temperatures, rain and icy streets to march in a rally on Saturday, January 17, in support of their own self-governance in the face of threats of an American takeover.
The Greenlanders waved their red-and-white national flags and listened to traditional songs as they walked through Nuuk\u2019s small downtown.
Some carried signs with messages like \u201cWe shape our future,\u201d \u201cGreenland is not for sale\u201d and \u201cGreenland is already GREAT.\u201d They were joined by thousands of others in rallies across the Danish kingdom.
The rallies occurred hours after a bipartisan US congressional delegation in Copenhagen sought to reassure Denmark and Greenland of their support following US President Donald Trump\u2018s threat to punish countries with tariffs if they don\u2019t back the administration\u2019s stance that the United States should take control of the strategic Arctic island.
The leader of the delegation, US Sen. Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat, said that the current rhetoric around Greenland is causing concern across the Danish kingdom. Coons said that he wants to de-escalate the situation.
\u201cI hope that the people of the Kingdom of Denmark do not abandon their faith in the American people,\u201d he said in Copenhagen, adding that the US has respect for Denmark and NATO \u201cfor all we\u2019ve done together.\u201d
Meanwhile, Danish Maj Gen Soren Andersen, leader of the Joint Arctic Command, told The Associated Press that Denmark doesn\u2019t expect the US military to attack Greenland, or any other NATO ally, and that European troops were recently deployed to Nuuk for Arctic defence training.
He said that the goal isn\u2019t to send a message to the Trump administration, even though the White House hasn\u2019t ruled out taking the territory by force.
\u201cI will not go into the political part, but I will say that I would never expect a NATO country to attack another NATO country,\u201d he told the AP on Saturday aboard a Danish military vessel docked in Nuuk. \u201cFor us, for me, it\u2019s not about signalling. It is actually about training military units, working together with allies.\u201d
The Danish military organised a planning meeting on Friday in Greenland with NATO allies, including the US, to discuss Arctic security on the alliance\u2019s northern flank in the face of a potential Russian threat. The Americans were also invited to participate in Operation Arctic Endurance in Greenland in the coming days, Andersen said.
In his two-and-a-half years as a commander in Greenland, Andersen said that he hasn\u2019t seen any Chinese or Russian combat vessels or warships, despite Trump saying that they were off the island\u2019s coast.
But in the unlikely event of American troops using force on Danish soil, Andersen confirmed a Cold War-era law governing Danish rules of engagement.
\u201cBut you are right that it is Danish law that a Danish soldier, if attacked, has the obligation to fight back,\u201d he said.
Thousands of people marched through Copenhagen, many of them carrying Greenland\u2019s flag, on Saturday afternoon in support of the self-governing island. Others held signs with slogans like \u201cMake America Smart Again\u201d and \u201cHands Off.\u201d
\u201cThis is important for the whole world,\u201d Danish protester Elise Riechie told the AP as she held Danish and Greenlandic flags. \u201cThere are many small countries. None of them is for sale.\u201d
Coons\u2019 comments contrasted with statements emanating from the White House. Trump has sought to justify his calls for a US takeover by repeatedly saying that China and Russia have their own designs on Greenland, which holds vast untapped reserves of critical minerals.
\u201cThere are no current security threats to Greenland,\u201d Coons said.
Trump has insisted for months that the US should control Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, and said earlier this week that anything less than the Arctic island being in US hands would be \u201cunacceptable.\u201d
During an unrelated event at the White House about rural health care, he recounted Friday how he had threatened European allies with tariffs on pharmaceuticals.
\u201cI may do that for Greenland, too,\u201d Trump said. \u201cI may put a tariff on countries if they don\u2019t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that.\u201d
He hadn\u2019t previously mentioned using tariffs to try to force the issue.
Earlier this week, the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland met in Washington with US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
That encounter didn\u2019t resolve the deep differences, but did produce an agreement to set up a working group \u2014 on whose purpose Denmark and the White House then offered sharply diverging public views.
European leaders have said that it\u2019s only for Denmark and Greenland to decide on matters concerning the territory, and Denmark said this week that it was increasing its military presence in Greenland in cooperation with allies.
\u201cThere is almost no better ally to the United States than Denmark,\u201d Coons said. \u201cIf we do things that cause Danes to question whether we can be counted on as a NATO ally, why would any other country seek to be our ally or believe in our representations?\u201d
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