Director of GE: Geopolitical uncertainty affects companies and the investment environment

The US President's repeated announcements that he wants to take over Greenland may affect business negatively.

- Stability and diplomacy are needed. Uncertainty and unrest are married too the investment environment, says director of Grønlands Erhverv, Christian Keldsen, who terming the disrespectful rhetoric of the US president as annoying, because the starting point is that there are all the prerequisites for a good cooperation climate between Greenland and the USA, which is also evident from Naalakkersuisut's Arctic strategy from 2024.

The US President's repeated announcements that he wants to take over Greenland may affect business negatively.

- Stability and diplomacy are needed. Uncertainty and unrest are married too the investment environment, says director of Grønlands Erhverv, Christian Keldsen, who terming the disrespectful rhetoric of the US president as annoying, because the starting point is that there are all the prerequisites for a good cooperation climate between Greenland and the USA, which is also evident from Naalakkersuisut's Arctic strategy from 2024.

- There are good framework conditions and prerequisites for trade with the United States, and it therefore seems completely unnecessary that from the American side, words like annexation and takeover are used Greenland.

Development of the country

In Naalakkersuisut's Arctic strategy, it states, among other things, that Greenland in many years have wanted to develop relations with the United States and that they will work to create direct trade and transport routes between Greenland and the USA. Greenland will too would like to develop cooperation with states in the USA, including Alaska and the USA north east coast. And then they would like to work so that the Defense Agreement from 1951 be extended to include Greenland as a party and to the greater benefit of Greenland.

– The current American rhetoric does not change the fact that we continue to focus on developing Greenland and running our companies, says Christian Keldsen.

Cancellations

Tourism companies have recently experienced some cancellations, but the other way around hotels and restaurants are also experiencing increased interest from journalists and media people who have taken the trip to Greenland at a time of the year when there usually not so many guests in the country.

According to Christian Keldsen, there is also individual employers who state the situation in the USA as the reason for that is difficult to recruit employees. The desire to invest is falling According to the director, the big challenge is whether the desire to invest is falling in step with the unrest around Greenland increasing.

- Everything we could think of us going forward is based on investments, and things like that going on now, is not good for the appetite for investment.

American Investments

Paradoxically, it has worked hard in Greenland in recent years to attract Americans in particular investments.

- Right now it is relevant to question everything that comes from the United States, but you have to remember that the United States has been a good friend of Greenland for many years. Naalakkersuisut has worked adamant about drawing the USA here, and in many contexts the focus is on attract investments and business partners from the United States. That we see American investment now, probably can not only be connected directly to the current situation, but is also one expression of a result of a long-term effort.

Our strength lies in our alliances

According to Christian Keldsen, our politicians also have a responsibility to stand together and clearly show that there is no doubt about Greenland's alliances with Denmark and the EU.

– This talk about standing together, should also be about showing that there is no doubt about our alliances. We is not an economic or military superpower, so our strength lies in our alliances with Denmark and the EU. Greenland is in the USA's backyard, and there is enough no doubt that our natural desire for independence can be experienced as one potential uncertainty for the United States in relation to who else might come up with that show interest in Greenland. We have to be aware of that, and that has continued very much, we ourselves can influence with our behavior and communication, says Christian Keldsen.