Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has disclosed that France is preparing to open a consulate in Greenland next month.
The opening of the consulate in the self-governed Danish territory, scheduled for February 6, and the announcement comes amid the ongoing threats from United States President Donald Trump to take control of the island.
“It’s a political signal that’s associated with a desire to be more present in Greenland, including in the scientific field.
“Greenland does not want to be owned, governed … or integrated into the United States. Greenland has made the choice of Denmark, NATO, [European] Union.”
Jean-Noel Barrot
Barrot said that the decision to open the consulate was taken in the summer when President Emmanuel Macron visited Greenland in a show of support. Barrot said that he had visited the island in August to make plans for the consulate.
The French Foreign Minister’s comments came as his Danish and Greenlandic counterparts, Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Vivian Motzfeldt, were due to meet US Vice President JD Vance today in Washington, DC, to discuss the island.
Rasmussen and Motzfeldt are due to meet Vance and Rubio at about 10.30am local time (3:30pm GMT) and will aim to de-escalate the crisis and find a diplomatic path to satisfy US demands for more control, analysts said.
Trump’s repeated statements that the Arctic territory will be brought under US control “one way or another” have created a crisis inside NATO.
European allies have warned that any takeover of the island would have serious repercussions for the relationship between the US and Europe.
Trump has said that the US needs Greenland, where Washington has long maintained military bases, due to the threat of a takeover posed by Russia and China. He claims that Denmark has neglected the territory’s security.
It’s also noted that Greenland has significant mineral riches, including oil and gas as well as rare earths needed for technological products.
Yesterday, Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a news conference in Copenhagen that the territory wanted to remain part of Denmark rather than join the US.
“We are now facing a geopolitical crisis, and if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark.”
Jens-Frederik Nielsen
Asked about Nielsen’s comments, Trump responded, “I disagree with him. I don’t know who he is.” He added, “I don’t know anything about him but that’s going to be a big problem for him.”
Denmark To Bolster Military Presence In Greenland
Denmark’s Defence Minister, Troels Lund Poulsen wrote in a statement today that his country plans to “strengthen” its military presence in Greenland and was in dialogue with its allies in NATO.
“We will continue to strengthen our military presence in Greenland, but we will also have an even greater focus within NATO on more exercises and an increased NATO presence in the Arctic.”
Troels Lund Poulsen
Meanwhile, the US President’s aggressive rhetoric continues to provoke pledges of support for Denmark and Greenland from other NATO nations.
Several EU leaders have backed Denmark, pledging their support for its territorial integrity and right to self-determination.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said today that the island “belongs to its people.”
“For me it’s important that the Greenlanders know and they know this by the deeds, not only by the words, that we respect the wishes of the Greenlanders and their interests and that they can count on us.”
Ursula von der Leyen
France’s President, Emmanuel Macron, also said that if “the sovereignty of an EU country and ally were to be affected, the knock-on effects would be unprecedented.”
He added that France would “act in full solidarity with Denmark and its sovereignty.”
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