There is no risk of the US annexing Greenland, but the island needs the US to monitor possible Chinese and Russian incursions, Kuno Fencker, a pro-independence member of the Greenlandic Parliament, told Brussels Signal during an interview yesterday.
“I think there’s no possibility of annexation. I don’t think that is the ambition of the United States“, Fencker said.
US claims that the islands was poorly monitored for security threats are true, he said.
“Denmark claims that they haven’t seen any Russian or Chinese vessels or Russian submarines. Of course, if you don’t have the equipment to see them, you can’t see them,” he added.
He said that although East Greenland is supported and secured by NATO, the problem is that “the surveillance of our waters and underwater and air is non-sufficient” in other parts of the island. In these areas, Denmark has only a “dog sledge team”.
“We need more surveillance, but to do that we need a much bigger military power [such] as the United States with icebreakers and other equipment, which Denmark can’t do at the moment,” Fencker said.
He also says Denmark has failed to honour past pledges to increase its security commitments to Greenland.
Denmark has increased its focus on Arctic security over the past year and announced investments of around 90 billion kroner (€1.2 billion).
Fencker said similar commitments had been made in the past, though, without concrete follow-up.
“Denmark also promised the United States to up the ante in regards to the military budget in 2019, under Trump’s first term, and they haven’t done anything about that,” he said.
He also says Denmark used its security guarantees against the pro-independence movement, and that the security threat President Donald Trump describes would exist if Denmark’s military left Greenland.
“When we want our independence, they [Denmark] are threatening us …that they will move out of Greenland militarily, which will create a defence and security vacuum in Greenland, which the United States, of course, can’t accept,” Fencker said.
US President Donald Trump has said the United States “needs” Greenland for defence reasons.
Trump reiterated his position on January 4: “We need Greenland from a national security situation…. and Denmark is not going to be able to do it… we do need Greenland, absolutely, we need it for defence”.
Greenland lies on the shortest missile route between Russia and the United States and already hosts a US military base.
Under international law and NATO rules, annexation would require the consent of the population concerned, and cannot be imposed unilaterally.
Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said January 6 the island was aware of its strategic importance but rejected any suggestion of annexation.
“We are fully aware of our country’s strategic location,” Nielsen said. “But we are members of NATO.”
“We also understand that our security depends on good friends and strong alliances,” he added.
Nielsen said relations with the United States were important but warned recent rhetoric risked undermining trust between allies.
“Enough is enough. No more pressure. No more insinuations. No more fantasies of annexation,” he said. “We are open to conversations. But they must take place through the proper channels and in full respect of international law”.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Copenhagen expected its allies to respect existing borders.
“We have a very clear expectation that everyone, especially our allies, respects the existing national borders: The international rules on which our world, the modern world, is built,” she said.
She added Greenland’s leadership had consistently stated its wish to be “Greenlandic” and “not a part of the United States”.
“The Greenlandic leader, on behalf of Naalakkersuisut, has been very clear all along that Greenland wants to be Greenlandic. And not a part of the United States,” she added.
Fencker said “it really depends on how you see it, I think the majority doesn’t want to be Americans, but there is a small amount of people that wants to be directly involved under the United States”.
He added his party supported full sovereignty for Greenland, including an ability to negotiate its own security arrangements.
This would permit Greenland to enter bilateral defence agreements or seek security guarantees.
Trump claimed a week previously Russian and Chinese vessels were “all over” Greenland’s coast.
China rejected this claim, with foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian urging Washington to cease using what he described as a “China threat” narrative.
Fencker said the security threat was occasionally overstated but that surveillance gaps remained. “I think sometimes a little exaggeration can make people understand what’s going on,” he said.
Russian submarines and Chinese icebreakers had been observed in the past but not recently, he said, while NATO’s monitoring capabilities in Greenlandic waters and airspace were limited.
The island has significant rare earth mineral reserves and is expected to gain strategic importance as Arctic ice melts and new shipping routes emerge.
The full video interview will be posted to the Brussels Signal homepage and Youtube channel later today.
