In Greenland, the threat of Trump hangs over us like Covid

Once again the year started with fireworks in Greenland. As is tradition, the fireworks are launched as early as 9pm, and are a spectacular sight that can hardly fail to move you a little.

A quiet but powerful gesture sent to friends and family on the other side of the Atlantic. Denmark – not the US or other countries – but Denmark. A country that Greenland has had ties to for hundreds of years. Ties that still exist, but which may be slowly wearing thin.

It is the country where blood has been mixed for generations, and where family ties go across the ocean. The country with King Frederik, who is also the king of all of Greenland.

At midnight, our own New Year is celebrated with even wilder fireworks. The snow and cold did not occur this New Year’s week. The streets were wet, the air milder than usual, as if the weather knew that everything would be turned upside down again.

Then Greenlanders woke up to the news that Donald Trump had not forgotten Greenland. He was standing on a plane and laughing. He says it’s about security, but the US already has the opportunity to build bases. So what is he really after? Once again, we wonder why Greenland is such an important piece of property.

We are again at the center of the world, even though we only have about 55,000 inhabitants. We live far apart from one another, and you can’t just drive from town to town. You have to fly or sail. The distances are great – but on Facebook they become shorter.

Today, Facebook is what connects the Inuit. Here, news, opinions and concerns are shared. But it is also a place where influence is easy. How easy is it to influence a population through social media and get people to believe in something?

Again and again a map of Greenland with the Greenlandic flag was shared. A symbol of unity. But it is also on Facebook that the powerlessness becomes clear.

Because what can you really do as an ordinary citizen when great powers are talking over your head? Is a flag as a profile picture enough to make Trump stay away? Does the rest of the world have to shout along before he listens?

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There is a great feeling of powerlessness among the population – all of us together could barely fill a baseball stadium. Many people not know which leg to stand on. Should you just go with the Americans? And if you are against it, does that mean you are automatically for the Danes? The nuances quickly disappear, and the attempt to divide a people already seems well underway.

Throughout the entire process, it feels like someone is laughing. Like when you see them standing there having fun at the idea of being able to “take over” Greenland in just 20 days. For them, it may be a joke. For us, it is reality.

The influence from outside is massive. Especially when you think about how powerful the US is. The fear that it is moving closer feels greater than ever before. It is being talked about everywhere. It’s like when Covid set in, and you didn’t dare go out the door. Greenland closed down, and all flights to the country were stopped.

A fear of the unknown has arisen again. Is the world with us? Or will they let Trump have his way in order to achieve what they call world peace? A situation that has made Greenland a global topic of conversation. A small people are trying to figure out who actually wants to help us, and who is just talking loud and over our heads. For us, Greenland is priceless. Greenland is not for sale.