NUUK, March 11, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - 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."

Five things to know about Greenland
    
NUUK, March 11, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Denmark's self-governing territory of Greenland, which votes Tuesday in legislative elections, has been propelled into the political spotlight because of its natural resources and strategic geographic location.

Here are five things to know about Greenland:

- 'Green land' -

Inhabited by Inuits on and off for almost 4,500 years, the island was originally dubbed 'Green land' by Erik the Red, a Viking explorer who landed on the far southern edge of the island in the 10th century.

That was a less-than-fitting name, since around 80 percent of its more than two million-square-kilometre (772,204 square-mile) surface is covered by ice.

Colonised by Denmark 300 years ago, it was integrated into the Kingdom of Denmark in 1953.

In 1979, Copenhagen granted Greenland home rule and its autonomy was further extended in a 2009 law, though Copenhagen still decides on foreign policy and military matters.

The economy, based primarily on the fisheries industry, is heavily dependent on subsidies from Copenhagen of more than $565 million a year, equivalent to a fifth of the island's GDP.

Contrary to Denmark, Greenland is not a member of the European Union after withdrawing in 1985, three decades before Brexit. More than 90 percent of its 57,000 inhabitants -- around 19,000 of whom live in the capital Nuuk -- are Inuits.

- Coveted by US -

President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated since December that the United States plans to take over Greenland, raising his tone in a March 4 speech to Congress.

"We need it really for international world security. And I think we're going to get it," he said.

US interest in the territory is not new: In the 1823 Monroe Doctrine, the United States claimed Greenland was part of its "sphere of interests".

Almost a century later, in 1917, Washington acquired the Virgin Islands from Denmark and recognised Denmark's sovereignty over Greenland.

During World War II, when Denmark was occupied by Germany, Greenland came under US protection and was returned to Denmark at the end of the war.

The US maintained several large military bases; One of them, Pituffik -- in the island's northwest -- is still in use.

The United States also has a consulate in Nuuk.

- Minerals in spades -

Greenland's soil is rich in untapped mineral and oil reserves, but on a global scale the amounts are modest.

And there are currently only two mines in operation.

Greenland's rare earths -- demand for which is expected to surge in the future -- are estimated at 36.1 billion tonnes by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS).

But its rare earths reserves -- those that are economically and technically recoverable -- amount to only about 1.5 million tonnes, according to the latest report from the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Public opposition to uranium mining in southern Greenland has also led to legislation banning any mining of radioactive materials.

The island is also believed to be sitting on an abundance of oil and gas but has suspended exploration out of concern for the climate and aims to develop hydropower instead.

Melting glaciers are also releasing a mineral-rich rock flour that can be used as a fertiliser in depleted or arid soil in Africa and South America.

- Front line of global warming -

The massive territory is experiencing firsthand the effects of global warming, with the Arctic heating up four times faster than the rest of the planet since 1979, according to a study in US journal Nature.

Numerous studies have also shown that the melting of Greenland's ice sheet has picked up speed.

If the ice mass, the second largest in the world after Antarctica, were to melt completely it could cause sea levels to rise by more than seven metres (23 feet), according to simulations.

- Northern routes -

Greenland lacks a road or rail network, so people rely on helicopters, planes and boats to get around.

Rising temperatures and melting ice are meanwhile opening new and shorter shipping routes, reinforcing the territory's strategic position.

It is counting on growing tourism to boost its economy.

In November, the Nuuk airport opened to long-haul flights, making international access to the territory easier. Twice weekly direct flights to New York are due to start this summer.