Hundreds of people in Greenland’s capital braved near-freezing temperatures to march in a rally in support of their own self-governance in the face of threats of a US takeover.
The Greenlanders waved their red-and-white national flags and listened to traditional songs as they walked through Nuuk’s small city centre on Saturday.
Some carried signs with messages like “We shape our future”, “Greenland is not for sale” and “Greenland is already GREAT”.
They were joined by thousands of others in rallies across the Danish kingdom.
The rallies occurred hours after a bipartisan US congressional delegation in Copenhagen sought to reassure Denmark and Greenland of their support following President Donald Trump’s threat to punish countries with tariffs if they do not back the administration’s stance that the US should take control of the strategic Arctic island.
The leader of the delegation, US senator Chris Coons, a Democrat, said that the current rhetoric around Greenland is causing concern across the Danish kingdom.
Mr Coons said that he wants to de-escalate the situation.
“I hope that the people of the Kingdom of Denmark do not abandon their faith in the American people,” he said in Copenhagen, adding that the US has respect for Denmark and Nato “for all we’ve done together”.
Meanwhile, Danish major general Soren Andersen, leader of the Joint Arctic Command, told The Associated Press that Denmark does not expect the US military to attack Greenland, or any other Nato ally, and that European troops were recently deployed to Nuuk for Arctic defence training.
He said that the goal is not to send a message to the Trump administration, even through the White House has not ruled out taking the territory by force.
“I will not go into the political part, but I will say that I would never expect a Nato country to attack another Nato country,” he told the AP on Saturday aboard a Danish military vessel docked in Nuuk.
“For us, for me, it’s not about signalling. It is actually about training military units, working together with allies.”
The Danish military organised a planning meeting on Friday in Greenland with Nato allies, including the US, to discuss Arctic security on the alliance’s northern flank in the face of a potential Russian threat.
The Americans were also invited to participate in Operation Arctic Endurance in Greenland in the coming days, Maj Gen Andersen said.