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...
03:56resources...
03:57and we know...
03:58that Greenland...
03:59is a hot bed of...
04:00of...
04:01you...
04:00raw materials. Would that be a...
04:05for negotiations that have increased American access to those resources, more mining...
04:10contracts as part of the commercial deal that you reference?
04:13Well, I do not want to combine...
04:15any form of defense agreement with access to our minerals. We need to keep...
04:20these things in their separate baskets, if you will. And we are very much...
04:25open to investments and collaborations with the US. We already have a memorandum of...
04:30understanding that is from 2019 under Trump 1 that we have been seeking to...
04:35to update. But we cannot, I think, start to...
04:40to put it all together in the same basket because it's different things we cannot give.
04:45another country full access to our minerals. This is...
04:50a rule-based country. So we, of course, you need to follow the...
04:54local rules and regulations.
04:55in order to gain access. But we have definitely...
04:58every interest in deepening our...
05:00our relationship and figuring out this...
05:02how can we...
05:03how can we...
05:04to our mutual benefit develop...
05:05our mineral sector.
05:06And several different investors...
05:08countries are interested...
05:10of course, in developing Greenland's mineral sector, including...
05:15some companies with Chinese links. Do you understand that Trump has...
05:20some concerns around that? And would you be willing to limit...
05:25the extent to which the West's adversaries, such as China, can...
05:30invest in your mineral sector? Currently, as I'm aware, we have two...
05:35Chinese companies invested in a mineral sector. Both of these licenses are inactive.
05:40And both are being fought in court, actually, against the government of Greenland.
05:44So I don't see...
05:45a lot of Chinese interest into a mineral sector. We don't see a lot of Chinese...
05:50these... interference in our waters, as I also mentioned.
05:55I think we have shown quite clearly throughout the years that where we stand in...
06:00terms of allyships and partnerships. And we have clearly chosen the Western...
06:05world as our partners, the European Union, the US, Canada...
06:10the UK. And I think we have both in regulation...
06:15and in policy shown where we stand.
06:20And the past few days have been quite frightening for some Greenlanders, especially...
06:25when Trump initially was using rhetoric such as the possibility of using...
06:30force to seize the territory. You mentioned that there could potentially...
06:35be dialogue around increased NATO presence. But do you think today...
06:40that Europe and Western allies, other than the US...
06:45would be ready and able to defend Greenland if it was needed?
06:50I think there's more than one answer to that question, really. I think that NATO has...
06:55proven itself to be a good alliance. The countries, the member states do not always...
07:00agree on everything, but it has, I think, shown and given prosperity and peace to...
07:05a wider part of the world than just the NATO member states. So I think it's a good alliance.
07:10So I believe that everything will be unchanged in the future. If you look at...
07:15the world historically, no, things have changed throughout the years and...
07:20allies have shifted. And of course, this will also happen to us sometime in the future.
07:25I think that right now there's a lot of wishful thinking in Europe, pining...
07:30towards the things that were, but we are in a changing world order and also...
07:35like the Canadian Prime Minister said, the rupture is already has happened. So I think...
07:40we all need to find our footing in these new alliances and figure out how do we see ourselves going forward...
07:45what kind of values do we want to guide our future policies and...
07:50it's not going to be free. It's going to cost difficult discussions.
07:55amongst allies, amongst friends, and also economically in the country.
08:00So I think a lot of things are up in the air at this moment, not only in Greenland, but also...
08:05in Europe and in the States. And we have to see where everything lands.
08:10You mentioned just very briefly that New World Order, that rupture, that...
08:15Prime Minister Carney of Canada referred to. How fearful are you that Greenland...
08:20and could be particularly vulnerable though, because we know of its strategic position in the Arctic, we know...
08:25of its mineral wealth, and what does Greenland need to be able to defend...
08:30itself in this New World Order where it's might overwrite?
08:35Well, Greenland will never be able to defend ourselves military on our own. That has never been our plan.
08:40And we have always been vulnerable towards outside interest from big...
08:45countries. We have been a colony in the past. We have been used to the...
08:50an intense look upon our resources from the outside world, and I think...
08:55the country has done a great job trying to build a community based on international law and transparency...
09:00and democracy. But mind you, if...
09:05even Greenland is at stake in some form or other in the future, so is the entire Western...
09:10world. That would only be part of it. That would mean that rupture was complete and that...
09:15you could no longer rely on international law to be upheld. So that would...
09:20change the situation not only in Greenland, but for everybody that is affected and...
09:25align ourselves with our values.
09:29Finally, what do you...
09:30think these past weeks months have done to the increasing...
09:35calls for more self-determination and eventually even independence for Greenland.
09:40Do you think that has received a little bit of a setback and then you realize that your...
09:45deeper reliance and connection with Denmark and with Europe or do you think there's still a...
09:50case to be made about further self-determination for Greenland?
09:54Well, I think...
09:55any country are working towards more self-determination but in your country. I think it's very natural.
10:00And for us, this has never been a sprint. It has always been a marathon. And we are working towards...
10:05more self-determination within the Kingdom of Denmark. And that is where the people's...
10:10appetite is currently and has been for many years. So there has never been this imminent...
10:15complete sovereignty right around the corner. I think that has been...
10:20something that has maybe been painted by outside media more than the actual...
10:25discussions within Greenland. So we are working towards more self-determination.
10:30in every aspect. If you look at the Greenland community and country, we have...
10:35really built strong institutions in the last 30, 40 years.
10:40and really shown that... that we gradually take more and more responsibilities.
10:45for our own community. And always with an underlying understanding...
10:50that we are so few, 57,000 people currently, that we will never be...
10:55able to gain fully independence and be able to defend our country military.
11:00that's never been a goal. It has always been a goal to gain more self-determination.
11:05And I think it's a very human want. And I think that will of course...
11:10stay. I also think that...
11:15that the idea of freedom is very...
11:19is a baseline...
11:20And for us...
11:21the idea that we can determine our own fate is...
11:25very strong. And these past two weeks, I think has really
11:30both cause concern, of course, but also
11:35it's like an anger beginning to come forward that
11:40people feel that what is happening now is unjust.
11:45And they find it difficult to wrap their head around that
11:48an ally would treat us like.
11:50Minister, many thanks for joining us on Euronews. Thank you.
11:55Thank you for having me. Have a nice day.
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