“MISUNDERSTANDINGS” 

For Nuuk and Copenhagen, Wednesday’s meeting at the White House is aimed at ironing out “misunderstandings”. 

These relate to Greenland’s defence, the Chinese and military presence in the Arctic, and the relationship between Greenland and Copenhagen, which together with the Faroe Islands make up the Kingdom of Denmark.

“To the uninformed American listener, the ongoing talks between Denmark and Greenland might have been construed as if Greenland’s secession from Denmark was imminent,” said Greenland specialist Mikaela Engell.

For these listeners, “I can understand that, in this situation, it would be better for the Americans to take hold of that strategic place”, the former Danish representative on the island told AFP.

But this “discussion has been going on for years and years and it has never meant that Greenland was on its way out the door”, she stressed.