Greenland and Denmark present a united front against US pressure, setting aside colonial grievances to counter Trump’s interest in the island.
COPENHAGEN: Greenland and Denmark have formed a united political front to counter pressure from US President Donald Trump. This cooperation requires setting aside a long and troubled colonial history between the Arctic island and the kingdom.
Greenland was a Danish colony for three centuries and remains an autonomous Danish territory. All of its main political parties desire full independence, though they disagree on the method.
Trump’s expressed interest in acquiring Greenland prompted the island’s rival parties to form a coalition government in March 2025. “Trump’s pressure has prompted the wide majority of the political spectrum that forms (Greenland’s) coalition government to put independence preparations aside for now,” said Ulrik Pram Gad, a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies.
The coalition was formed to present a unified stance against external pressure. Only the Naleraq party, which advocates for a fast track to independence, remained in opposition.
Greenland’s leaders have explicitly rejected Trump’s overtures. Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen stated that if forced to choose, Greenland would side with Denmark over the United States.
Recent diplomatic activity has shown close coordination. Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt has undertaken high-level talks in Washington and Brussels alongside Danish counterparts.
This unity temporarily masks deep historical grievances from Denmark’s colonial rule. These include a 1951 social experiment where Inuit children were taken from families to create a Danish-speaking elite.
Another dark chapter involved the involuntary fitting of intrauterine devices in thousands of Greenlandic women and teenagers from the 1960s onward. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has apologised, and a compensation process is underway.
A 2022 study also revealed that children from Greenlandic families in Denmark were far more likely to be placed in care than ethnic Danish children. The recent focus on Trump has paused debate on these colonial injustices.
“Right now I think there’s a general agreement that the common opponent right now is Trump and we kind of need to face this together somehow,” said DIIS specialist Astrid Andersen.
