Earlier today, the French president supported Greenland in an opening speech at a UN conference on protecting the world’s oceans.
– Greenland is not something you can just take, and the same goes for Antarctica and the open ocean – they are not for sale.
This was stated by French President Emmanuel Macron earlier today in his opening speech at a UN conference on protecting the world’s oceans. The conference is in Nice.
This is what the media outlet Politico writes.
The comment is of course a clear allusion to US President Donald Trump’s idea of controlling and taking over Greenland.
Emmanuel Macron said Monday that Greenland is “not for the taking” in a not-so-veiled swipe at Donald Trump’s continued threats to annex the Arctic island.https://t.co/fzC2kPxRhp
Macron will visit on Sunday with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. They will meet with Jens-Frederik Nielsen (Democratic Party), who is the chairman of the Greenlandic government, and according to Politico, the three will discuss security in the North Atlantic and the Arctic, climate change, energy and critical minerals.
And Macron in particular has been quite clear in his support for Greenland. In January, France showed its support by saying that the country was ready to send soldiers to Greenland if the Kingdom of Denmark requests it in order to resist pressure from Donald Trump.
Vivian Motzfeldt invited
In May, Vivian Motzfeldt (S), who is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greenland, visited France and in this connection delivered an invitation to visit Greenland.
During the visit, Vivian Motzfeldt thanked France for its support during the great pressure from Trump at the beginning of the year.
Earlier this year, French pilots practiced landings with Airbus A400Ms in Greenland. The purpose was to practice landing and taking off in places that are impassable due to ice and snow.
The US’s desire for Greenlandic control
On December 23, 2024, Donald Trump stated that he believes the United States should have ownership of Greenland. Since then, the message has been repeated repeatedly by both himself and his staff.
On January 7, Donald Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., landed in Nuuk, which brought the world’s attention to Greenland.
The same day, the incoming president said he would not rule out using economic or military force to gain control of Greenland – despite the fact that the US and Denmark are both members of NATO and despite the fact that the US has had a military presence in Greenland since World War II.
On March 13, President Trump was asked if he would annex Greenland. He replied: – I think it will happen.
On March 15, Nuumiut took to the streets in a demonstration against the United States’ desire to take over Greenland. Possibly the largest demonstration in the country’s history.
After much debate and warnings of demonstrations, the wife of US Vice President J.D. Vance canceled a planned visit to Sisimiut. Instead, the couple landed at Pituffik Space Base on March 28, where a press conference was held.
On April 10, The New York Times revealed that the American strategy was now to persuade the Greenlanders to become part of the United States – including through soft power and private investment.
On May 6, the Wall Street Journal revealed that US President Donald Trump has ordered the heads of intelligence agencies such as the CIA, NSA and DIA to increase intelligence gathering in Greenland. Among other things, the order called for a list of Greenlanders who could help the US achieve its goals. This led several experts and countries to suspect US espionage in Greenland.