Green No Deal

Despite proud Greenlanders chafing under Danish rule, the idea of President Trump annexing their country to the United States isn’t very appealing to most. But like with many things the president is intent on accomplishing, the Greenlanders’ feelings may not be enough to stop him

I‘m walking down the snow-covered streets of Nuuk, capital city of Greenland, when a shiny SUV roars ahead of me, pulls a hard left turn, and stops short, fishtailing on the icy road. The driver rolls his window down and I suppress a smile. It’s the prime minister of Greenland, Múte Bourup Egede, and he looks furious. “You!” he shouts. “Come with me! We’re going to the police!”

Instead of panicking, I think, This can’t get any more surreal.

President Trump’s bombastic announcement that he intends to annex Greenland to the US has turned the world’s attention on the freezing island located between the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans. Currently an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, its strategic location offers an enormous advantage in the increasingly tense dance between three superpowers: Russia, China, and the US. And beyond location, Greenland’s supposed geological riches have also sparked Trump’s interest — hence my 2,000 mile pilgrimage from Toms River, New Jersey, to Nuuk, Greenland, braving the arctic temperatures to hear what the locals actually think about this contentious issue.

Of course, I wanted a statement from the prime minister, and when my emails went unanswered, I decided to do the simplest thing and knock on his door. There was no security, and the young woman who answers the door says the prime minister isn’t home and declines to comment.