The US president's saber-rattling against the kingdom has spurred the EU Commission to more than double investments in Greenland.
On Monday this week, EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Sikela met with Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen (M) and members of the Danish Parliament to coordinate the plans, which have also been agreed with Greenland.
- The escalation triggered a need to show solidarity more quickly and show that the EU and the EU Commission stand behind Greenland, says Jozef Síkela during his visit to Copenhagen to Ritzau.
- I also will not hide that we may - and it will happen - add extra money to make the investments even more significant and give Greenlanders confidence that the plan will take care of all parts of their lives, lower the cost of living and give them a sustainable future.
From DKK 225 million to DKK 500-550 million over 7 years
The European Commission plans to increase investments from 225 million euros to 500-550 million euros, around 4 billion kroner, in the next budget period.
Everything the EU Commission does, he adds, is done in cooperation with Greenland and coordinated with Denmark: "The Greenlanders decide what they want."
A message from the Commissioner is that you can find many partners who want to invest in Greenland, but they are not all equally reliable and trustworthy.
- We are seeing a substantial change in geopolitics. We are increasingly seeing a very aggressive, very assertive and business-driven approach from the so-called great powers. What we want to do is offer an alternative approach.
Greenland's economy is completely dependent on fishing. This is a major challenge, as developments in quotas, prices and catches can throw finances off course.
Focus on minerals and energy
Where the EU has previously focused more narrowly, the upcoming package will help to spread the economy more widely. The focus is on critical minerals, clean energy and digital infrastructure.
The extraction of minerals has proven to be both difficult and has led to significant popular resistance in Greenland due to pollution.
The EU will still go that way, but in a more sustainable way, because in the "long run" it can be rewarding for Greenland - and for the EU.
According to the Commissioner, one purpose of the EU project Global Gateway and the investments in Greenland is also to "limit China's influence."
"China's control over mining and critical materials has reached a very dangerous level for its competitors - or let's call it systemic rivals - because it creates a dangerous dependency, in the same way that Russia has exploited Europe's dependence on crude oil and natural gas as a weapon," says Sikela.
