The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will travel this Sunday and Monday to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, on a visit with which Brussels seeks to strengthen its relations with the island and stage the support of the European Union in the face of the repeated claims of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to take control of the territory.
During her stay, Von der Leyen will hold meetings with the Greenlandic Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and the Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen. She will also meet with the Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands, Beinir Johannesen.
The trip comes at a time of growing geopolitical interest in the Arctic, a strategic region due to its importance for security, defense, raw materials, maritime routes, and connectivity infrastructures.
Greenland, at the center of the tension with Trump
The visit comes after Donald Trump has claimed several times this year the control of Greenland, an autonomous territory belonging to the Kingdom of Denmark. The U.S. President has justified his claims for reasons related to national security.
The Greenlandic and Danish authorities have rejected these claims, as has the European Union, which has argued that it is exclusively up to the inhabitants of Greenland to decide on the future of the island.
Von der Leyen has already claimed the right of Greenlanders to decide their future and has highlighted the close relationship between Brussels and Nuuk.
A joint declaration between the EU, Greenland, and Denmark
During the visit, the three leaders will address the main challenges and opportunities of Greenland and the entire Arctic region, in addition to studying new initiatives to strengthen cooperation.
On Sunday, Von der Leyen will travel by boat alongside Nielsen and Frederiksen to the Greenland ice sheet. A day later, the three leaders will inaugurate a project aimed at improving the satellite connectivity of the island at the facilities of the Greenlandic company Tusass.
On Monday, the signing of a renewed joint declaration between the European Union, Greenland, and Denmark regarding their relations is also planned. Subsequently, the three will appear before the media.
Brussels strengthens its presence in the Arctic
The European Union is currently reviewing its policy for the Arctic with the aim of adapting it to the growing geopolitical and strategic weight of the region. Von der Leyen’s visit also represents a new step in strengthening the European presence in Greenland. The president of the Commission already traveled to the island in March 2024 and, a year later, the EU opened an office in Nuuk.
Von der Leyen was scheduled to return to Greenland last February, but the trip was postponed following the early call for elections in Denmark. The president of the Commission will be accompanied during the trip by the European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jozef Síkela, and by the special advisor for EU relations with the Arctic, Jyrki Katainen.