A new poll has found that around 85% of Greenlanders do not wish to become part of the United States, contradicting claims made by former US President Donald Trump. The survey, commissioned by the Danish daily newspaper Berlingske and conducted by pollster Verian, reveals that only 6% of Greenlanders support integration into the US, with 9% remaining undecided.
Trump previously asserted that Greenland was vital to US security and suggested Denmark should relinquish control of its semi-autonomous territory. However, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has strongly defended Greenland’s current status, reinforcing international support for its sovereignty.
“The clear message from friends in the Nordic countries and Europe, and also outside Europe, is that there must of course be respect for territories and the sovereignty of states,” Frederiksen stated. “This is crucial for the international community we have built together since the Second World War.”
Denmark has further demonstrated its commitment to Greenland by announcing a £1.6bn investment to strengthen its military presence in the Arctic. The vast island, which is larger than Mexico but home to just 57,000 people, was granted broad self-governing autonomy in 2009. Greenland retains the right to declare full independence from Denmark through a referendum, should its people choose to do so.
Greenland’s Prime Minister, Mute Egede, has been a vocal proponent of independence and has repeatedly dismissed the notion that the island is for sale. “It is up to the people of Greenland to decide their own future,” Egede affirmed.
Despite the US military maintaining a strategic presence at the Pituffik Space Base in northwest Greenland, the sentiment among the local population remains clear: Greenlanders overwhelmingly support their right to self-determination and do not seek integration into the United States.