By John Irish
PARIS, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Greenland’s prime minister said on Wednesday there were red lines that could not be crossed in discussions with the United States, but acknowledged that more needed to be done to boost security in the region in the face of a more aggressive Russia.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen were in Paris to meet French President Emmanuel Macron to shore up support over U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to take over the Arctic island that has been Danish territory for centuries.
Macron said France shared the view that it was necessary to reinforce defence in the Arctic.
“Given Russia’s stance in the Far North, China’s economic presence, and the strategic consequences of this rapprochement, we agree on the need to strengthen our defence posture in the Arctic,” he said.
France also supported increased NATO vigilance and activity in the Arctic, he said. “We are ready to join.”
GREENLAND UNDER ‘SERIOUS PRESSURE’, PM SAYS
Talks between Greenland, Denmark and the United States are due to take place to try to find a solution to the crisis, but Nielsen said Greenland had some red lines that could not be crossed, even if he hoped to come to some sort of agreement, without elaborating.
“We are under pressure, serious pressure. We are trying to push back from the outside. We are trying to handle our people who are afraid, scared,” he said in a joint conversation with Frederiksen at Sciences Po University.
But he also said: “We need to do more surveillance and security in our region because of the way Russia acts now.”
EUROPE MUST STICK TOGETHER, FREDERIKSEN SAYS
The U.S. demand for control of Greenland has shaken transatlantic relations and accelerated European efforts to reduce dependence on the United States, even as Trump last week withdrew tariff threats and ruled out taking Greenland by force.
Frederiksen said that what the crisis had shown was that the majority of Europeans were on the same page and had been able to unite to push back on Trump’s demands, notably his threat of additional tariffs on some European states.
“I think there are some lessons learned in the last couple of weeks for Europe,” she later said at a press conference with Macron and Nielsen.
Saying the world order had changed forever and questioning what may happen in Washington in the future, Frederiksen said it was vital for Europe to become stronger, but also urged transatlantic unity given it was clear Russia did not want peace.
“If we allow Russia to win in Ukraine, they will continue,” she said. “The best way forward for the United States, Europe is to stick together.”
The diplomatic rift between Denmark and the United States, both founding members of NATO, had seemed in recent weeks to threaten the future of the military alliance, although the conflict has since been moved to a diplomatic track.
Half of the landmass in the Arctic is Russian territory. Since 2005 Moscow has re-opened and modernised tens of Soviet-era military bases, both on its Arctic mainland and on the islands off its northern coast.
Russia says talk of Moscow and Beijing being a threat to Greenland is a myth to whip up hysteria.
(Reporting by John Irish; Editing by Alison Williams and Alex Richardson)
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