Russia Monitoring Trump’s Claim To Greenland

Russia is closely monitoring the situation in Greenland after US President-elect Donald Trump refused to rule out military action to take Greenland from Denmark, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Peskov said the Arctic was in Russia’s “sphere of national and strategic interests and it is interested in peace and stability there”.

Trump’s remarks on Greenland – a largely autonomous Danish territory – have drawn a warning from European leaders.

EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas has stressed that “we have to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Greenland”, and Germany’s Olaf Scholz has made clear that “borders must not be moved by force”.

Trump said earlier this week that the US needed both Greenland and the Panama Canal “for economic security”, and refused to rule out using either economic or military force in taking them over.

He also referred to the border with Canada as an “artificially drawn line”. Denmark and Canada are both close Nato allies of the US.

Dmitry Peskov said Trump’s claims were a matter for the US, Denmark and other nations, but Russia was watching the “rather dramatic” situation surrounding his remarks. “We are present in the Arctic zone, and we will continue to be present there,” he said.

About 56,000 people live in Greenland, and it is home to US as well as Danish military bases. It also has considerable untapped mineral and oil wealth.

Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede has been pushing for independence, although the territory’s economy relies heavily on Danish subsidies.

Both he and the Danish leader have emphasised that it is “not for sale” and that its future is in the hands of Greenlanders themselves.

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy played down Trump’s comments, although he acknowledged the “intensity of his rhetoric and the unpredictability sometimes of what he said can be destabilising”.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said Copenhagen has a clear interest in ensuring that the US – “absolutely its closest ally” – plays a key role at a time of rising tensions in the North Atlantic, particularly involving Russia.

BBC/Ejiofor Ezeifeoma