Greenland votes under shadow of Trump / Photo: Odd ANDERSEN - AFP
Greenland votes under shadow of Trump
Greenland, the Danish self-governing territory coveted by US President Donald Trump, votes Tuesday in legislative elections that could yield a timeline for independence, which is supported by a majority of the population.
Trump, determined to get his hands on the vast Arctic island "one way or the other", tried until the last minute to influence the election, sparking astonishment, rejection, and, to a small degree, enthusiasm among the 57,000 Greenlanders.
"He puts the focus of Greenland back in international relations, like everyone's focusing on it. So in that way, it's good," said Hans Kaali Davidsen, a resident of Nuuk, the capital, under a glacial rainfall.
But, he stressed, "Trump himself, the way he's been handling his own politics and his own country and how everything's shaping up in the US -- no, we don't want him."
The lead-up of the election to choose the 31-seat parliament, called the Inatsisartut, was mostly marked by a debate on issues such as healthcare, education, and future ties with Denmark, which still controls foreign, defence and monetary policy.
Greenland's inhabitants -- almost 90 percent of whom are Inuits -- say they are tired of being treated like second-class citizens by their former colonial power.
All the main political parties favour independence, but they disagree on the timeframe.
- Balance of power -
The election result will define the balance of power between those who want to independence quickly -- such as the nationalist Naleraq party, the main opposition faction -- and those who prefer to wait until the island is financially independent, such as the two parties who make up the outgoing coalition, the left-green Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA) and social democratic Siumut.
The island, covered 80 percent by ice, depends on its fisheries sector, which accounts for almost all of its exports, and annual Danish subsidies of more than $565 million, equivalent to a fifth of its GDP.
The most impatient independence backers believe Greenland will soon be able to stand on its own thanks to untapped mineral reserves, including rare earths crucial to the green transition.
But the mining sector is still in its embryonic stages, hampered by high costs due to Greenland's harsh climate and lack of infrastructure.
Trump floated the idea of buying Greenland during his first mandate, in a bid swiftly rejected by Danish and Greenlandic authorities.
Back in the White House, he has circled back on the ambition with greater fervour, refusing to rule out the use of force and invoking US national security.
Late Sunday, Trump invited Greenlanders "to be a part of the Greatest Nation anywhere in the World, the United States of America". He promised in a post on his social network Truth Social to make them "rich".
The most recent polling on the issue, published in January, shows 85 percent of Greenlanders are opposed to Trump's idea.
"We don't want to be American. He is so arrogant," 58-year-old Rene Olsen, a ship repairman, told AFP on Monday.
Yet Trump's statements -- described as "unpredictable" by outgoing Prime Minister Mute Egede -- have sent a jolt through election campaigns.
Naleraq's nationalists say his remarks give them leverage ahead of independence negotiations with Denmark.
"Trump's message is indeed a positive one, since it provides a safer and more stable ground for Greenland's move to independence," party member Juno Berthelsen told AFP.
"We need the United States for national security and vice versa."
- More polarisation -
But Trump's remarks have also chilled some independence supporters, making continued ties with Copenhagen more attractive to them.
A municipal employee in the southern town of Qaqortoq, Kornelia Ane Rungholm, said she did not want "independence today, because Trump will take us as soon as possible".
Ahead of the election, Denmark's intelligence agency PET expressed concerns about "possible influence" from a foreign power, notably Russia.
Greenland's parliament also adopted a law banning foreign and anonymous donations to political parties.
Political analysts say Trump's meddling in the election contributed to a more polarised debate, by reinforcing each side's convictions, but overall it was not expected to influence the result.
His last message "demonstrates the way the Trump administration insists on interfering in other countries' elections," Danish political scientist Ulrik Pram Gad told AFP.
"But already, after Germany (where Trump's close supporter Elon Musk is backing the far-right AfD party) they should have learned that it's not serving them well," he said.
"The sender of the message is not appealing to the one for whom the message is intended."
E.Reyes--RTC
