Greenland's natural resources in the focus of Trump administration

DW (English)

Greenland's untapped mineral wealth has moved into the limelight of global politics after US President Donald Trump has offered to buy the Danish territory.

Transcript

00:00Greenland may be known for its wealth of natural beauty,

00:04but it also has wealth under the ice and snow.

00:07Many international mining companies have explored land here,

00:10and many have proof there's value under the ground.

00:14But in 2021, the Greenland government banned uranium extraction.

00:19Sven Hardenberg of Greenland Minerals, which has a uranium site ready to mine,

00:24says that's a mistake, that the government revenues from permitting mining

00:29could reach into the billions of euros.

00:32The government has not issued a license for rare earth elements

00:38plus uranium as a by-product.

00:40It's a mature project in the sense that we can start the project going forward right away.

00:45That means that we can hire people in and start building the infrastructure for the mine

00:51and start mining after that.

00:54A 2023 scientific survey showed that 25 of 34 minerals

00:59deemed critical raw materials by the European Union are found in Greenland.

01:05Zinc, gold and even diamonds,

01:08but also lithium for batteries and uranium for nuclear technologies.

01:13With a population of just 56,000 people

01:16and still an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark,

01:19many Greenlanders fear the consequences of approving widespread mining projects.

01:25When you speak to the people of Greenland

01:27about the natural resources that are expected to be here,

01:30there's two main things that come up.

01:32First, they want to make sure that Greenland benefits

01:35from the wealth of those resources being extracted.

01:38And secondly, they have concerns about the ecological impacts of mining.

01:44People like Pitanguak Tisusen, the founder of Friends of Nuuk Fjord,

01:48think the country's nature must be protected above all else.

01:52Everything saw dollar signs, what I say.

01:57Take it easy, let's see.

01:59Big companies want our uranium,

02:02so it will be very bad for our nature.

02:08Donald Trump's declarations that he wants to buy Greenland

02:11only play into the politics here.

02:13And this issue is significant for voters

02:16who are heading into snap elections in March.

02:19MPs know it's a vote-swinging issue.

02:22We know that the biggest party now,

02:24Inuitakatsingit, won last time in the election

02:28because they said, no, we don't want to use them

02:31because they are afraid to pollution,

02:34but also to anything, bombs.

02:39Greenlanders are only set to face ever-increasing pressure

02:42from international players for their natural wealth

02:45and even more so while US President Trump

02:48continues to push to buy the country.

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