Greenland’s prime minister said he is keen to boost cooperation with the European Union in the face of President Donald Trump’s threats to annex the Arctic territory.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the prime minister of the self-ruling Danish territory, gave the first-ever address by a leader of Greenland to the European Parliament on Wednesday, which he said came toward the end of “a dramatic year for Greenland.”
“The world is changing, and it’s changing fast,” Nielsen said, without directly mentioning the American president’s saber-rattling. “Greenland needs the European Union, and the European Union needs Greenland.”
Calling the EU “a steadfast friend … during challenging times we are going through right now,” Nielsen talked up the island’s vast reserves of rare earths and critical minerals, which he said have the potential to “shift global and security balances” and are ripe for investment.
