Canada and France open Greenland consulates in show of Denmark support

Canada and France are to open diplomatic consulates in the capital of Greenland on Friday, showing support for their Nato ally Denmark and the Arctic island after US efforts to secure control of the semi-autonomous Danish territory.Canada’s foreign minister, Anita Anand, was travelling to Nuuk to inaugurate the consulate, which officials say also could help boost cooperation on issues such as the climate crisis and Inuit rights. She was joined by Canada’s Indigenous governor general, Mary Simon.France’s foreign ministry said Jean-Noël Poirier would take up duties as the country’s consul general, making it the first EU country to establish a consulate general in Greenland.Poirier would be “tasked with working to deepen existing cooperation projects with Greenland in the cultural, scientific and economic fields, while also strengthening political ties with the local authorities”, the ministry said.Canada had promised to open a consulate in Greenland in 2024 – before Trump’s recent talk of a takeover – and the formal inauguration was delayed from November because of bad weather.Anand met her Danish counterpart, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, in Denmark on Thursday and posted on social media that “as Arctic nations, Canada and the Kingdom of Denmark are working together to strengthen stability, security and cooperation across the region.”France says the decision to open its diplomatic outpost was taken when its president, Emmanuel Macron, visited in June.Donald Trump, the US president, announced in January that he would impose new tariffs on Denmark and seven other European countries that opposed his calls for a US takeover of Greenland, only to abruptly drop his threats after he said a “framework” for a deal over access to the mineral-rich territory had been reached with the help of the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte. Few details of that agreement have emerged.Last week, technical talks started between the US, Denmark and Greenland to put together an Arctic security deal. The foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland had agreed to create a working group during a meeting with the US vice-president, JD Vance, and secretary of state, Marco Rubio, before Trump made his tariff threats.