00:00.
00:05Joining me is Greenland.
00:10The Prime Minister for Business, Energy and Mineral Resources, Naya Nathanielsen.
00:15Her government is now entering talks with the US and Denmark over the future.
00:20President Donald Trump is still seeking an unprecedented
00:25foothold in the Arctic island, despite climbing down on his previous threats.
00:30Minister, thank you so much.
00:35Thank you so much for joining us.
00:36It's a pleasure to have you.
00:37Thank you for having me.
00:38So can I first ask you to reflect...
00:40on the dramatic recent few days when the future of...
00:45Greenland was really in the balance.
00:47After all of this, can Greenlanders...
00:50still consider Trump's America to be their ally and friend.
00:55If I reflect back on the last 14 days and so, I think...
01:00it was...
01:01we saw an increased rhetoric regarding Greenland in terms of the American interest, but...
01:05mind you, the US have had an interest in Greenland for the past many years actually, more than...
01:10hundred of years.
01:11So we are quite used to this interest from the US and we do...
01:15realize that we are part of that national security interest sphere.
01:19So that part is not...
01:20new to us.
01:21Of course, there has been an increased rhetoric about buying or acquiring...
01:25Greenland or even taking us by force.
01:27We are not a territory.
01:28We are a country.
01:30equal...
01:31equal country within the Kingdom of Denmark.
01:34And...
01:35we are a people in our own right, acknowledged by law and therefore...
01:40of course, it would be a great and grave violation of international law if...
01:44if any...
01:45anything was to happen without our consent.
01:47Trump has obviously climbed down.
01:50on his most threatening rhetoric.
01:53But you are now entering...
01:55talks with his administration as well as with Denmark on a future kind of...
02:00a framework deal.
02:01Trump says that a framework deal does exist.
02:04Are you aware...
02:05of that framework and what does it entail?
02:07There is no deal yet.
02:10what we have is an agreement to venture into a dialogue between...
02:14it's going to...
02:15be...
02:16I think...
02:17maybe a number of different dialogues.
02:18I think there will be a NATO-led...
02:20dialogue that has to do with maybe...
02:22an increased presence from NATO and...
02:25in the high north...
02:26that could be Greenland.
02:27We would welcome that.
02:29Then there would be...
02:30these trilateral dialogues between the US on one side and the...
02:35Kingdom of Denmark consistent in this part of...
02:37Greenland and Denmark on the other side.
02:39And we still...
02:40have to gain clarity about what is...
02:42what is the American interest.
02:45concretely because we really haven't heard anything yet.
02:49And then there might...
02:50be something regarding...
02:52a more...
02:53a closure business type.
02:55there...
02:56and that would be a whole other dialogue as well.
02:59You mentioned...
03:00that you are...
03:01a country...
03:02you are...
03:03a people...
03:04and your Prime Minister has...
03:05said that Greenland's sovereignty and...
03:08integrity of its borders cannot...
03:10be violated...
03:11it's non-negotiable.
03:12Yet...
03:13Trump is saying in public...
03:14that he wants...
03:15full access...
03:16um...
03:17to your country.
03:18Do you think that...
03:19a compromise...
03:20is...
03:21is possible here?
03:22I think...
03:23if you look at the 1951...
03:24agreed...
03:25agreement already in place...
03:27the US has wide access...
03:28to Greenland...
03:29and we have no...
03:30problems with this...
03:31we also...
03:32do not have any problems...
03:33with some sort of...
03:34of...
03:35update of that...
03:36agreement...
03:37but we would of course...
03:38need to hear more...
03:39in detail...
03:40what that...
03:40would entail...
03:41and how that...
03:42would be...
03:43possible...
03:44with our Red Lions...
03:45which is...
03:45mentioned...
03:46that we want...
03:47the territory...
03:48to be...
03:49the realm...
03:50to be...
03:50intact...
03:51and our sovereignty...
03:52to be intact...
03:53You are however...
03:54Minister...
03:55for...
03:55general resources...
03:56and...
03:57we know...
03:58that Greenland...
03:59is...
04:00a hotbed...
04:01And would that be up for negotiation?
04:06Sort of increased American access to those resources, more mining contracts as part of the...
04:11the commercial deal that you reference?
04:13Well, I do not want to combine as any...
04:16a form of defense agreement with access to our minerals.
04:19We need to keep these things in...
04:21in their separate baskets, if you will.
04:24And we are very much open to...
04:26investments and collaborations with the US.
04:28We already have a memorandum of understanding that...
04:31from 2019 under Trump 1 that we have been seeking to update.
04:36But we cannot, I think, start to...
04:40to put it all...
04:41all together in the same basket because it's different things.
04:44We cannot give another...
04:46country full access to our minerals.
04:48This is a rule-based...
04:51country.
04:52So we, of course, you need to follow the...
04:54local rules and regulations in order to...
04:56gain access.
04:57But we have definitely every interest in...
04:59in deepening our relationship and...
05:01figuring out this...
05:02how can we...
05:03to our mutual benefit develop our mineral sector.
05:06And several different investors...
05:09countries are interested, of course, in...
05:11in developing Greenland's mineral sector.
05:14Including some companies with...
05:16Chinese links.
05:17Do you understand that Trump has...
05:20some...
05:21concerns around that?
05:22And would you be willing to limit...
05:25the...
05:26extent to which the West's adversaries...
05:28such as China...
05:29can invest in your...
05:31mineral sector?
05:32Currently, as I'm aware, we have two...
05:35Chinese companies...
05:36invested in a mineral sector.
05:37Both of these licenses are inactive...
05:39and both are being...
05:41in court actually...
05:42against the government of Greenland.
05:44So I don't see a lot of...
05:45Chinese...
05:46Chinese interest into...
05:47our mineral sector.
05:48We don't see a lot of...
05:49Chinese...
05:51in...
05:56...
05:58the years that where we stand in terms of allyships and partnerships and we have
06:03chosen the western world as as our partners the european union
06:08u.s canada uk and i think
06:13we have both in regulation and in policy shown where we stand
06:18minister um the past few days have been quite frightening
06:23for some greenlanders especially when trump initially was using rhetorics
06:28such as uh the possibility of using force to seize the territory
06:32uh you may
06:33mention that there could potentially be dialogue around increased nato presence
06:38but do you think today um that europe and uh west
06:43and allies other than the us would be ready and able to defend
06:48greenland if it was needed i think there's more than one answer to that question
06:53really i think that nato has proven itself to be a good alliance uh
06:58the countries the member states do not always agree on everything but it has i think shown
07:14you
07:03it has been given prosperity and peace to a wider part of the world than just the nato members
07:08the united states so i think it's a good alliance too i believe that everything will be unchanged
07:13in the future if you look at the world historically no things have changed throughout the year
07:18and uh and and allies have shifted and uh and allies have shifted and uh and allies have shifted and of course this will also happen
07:32you
07:34you
07:23you
07:28you
07:32you
07:33changing world order, and also like the Canadian Prime Minister said, the rupture is already
07:38has happened. So I think we all need to find our footing in these new alliances.
07:43How do we see ourselves going forward? What kind of values do we want to guide our future?
07:48Future policies. And it's not going to be free. It's going to cost.
07:53Difficult discussions amongst allies, amongst friends and
07:58also economically in the country. So I think a lot of things are up in the air at this moment.
08:03Not only in Greenland, but also in Europe, and in the States, and we have to see where
08:08everything lands.
08:10You mentioned just very briefly that new world.
08:13Order that rupture that Prime Minister Carney of Canada referred to.
08:18How fearful are you that Greenland could be particularly vulnerable, though, because we know this...
08:23strategic position in the Arctic. We know of its mineral wealth.
08:27And what does...
08:28Greenland needs to be able to defend itself in this new world order where it's...
08:33might overwrite.
08:34Might overwrite.
08:35Well, Greenland will never be able to defend ourselves military.
08:38on our own.
08:39That has never been our plan.
08:41And we have always been vulnerable towards...
08:43outside interest from bigger countries.
08:46We have been a colony in the past.
08:48We have been used to an intense look upon our resources.
08:53from the outside world.
08:54And I think he's done a great job trying to build a community based on...
08:58international law and transparency and democracy, but...
09:03mind you, if Greenland is at stake in some form or other...
09:08in the future, so is the entire Western world.
09:11That would only be part of it.
09:12That would be...
09:13mean that rupture was complete and that you could no longer rely on international law to...
09:18be upheld.
09:19So that would change the situation, not only in Greenland, but for everybody.
09:23that is affected and...
09:25and...
09:26rely ourselves with our...
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10:17Sovereigncy right around the corner.
10:18I think that has been something that has maybe been painted.
10:22It has been painted by outside media more than the actual discussions within Greenland.
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