Canada to open Greenland consulate amid allies' rebuke of Trump

Wednesday 07 January 2026 - 11:50

By: Dakir Madiha

Canada to open Greenland consulate amid allies' rebuke of Trump

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Tuesday that Governor General Mary Simon and Foreign Minister Anita Anand will travel to Greenland in early February to inaugurate a consulate in Nuuk. The move aligns Canada with European allies opposing President Donald Trump's renewed threats to annex the Arctic territory. Speaking alongside Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen at the Canadian embassy in Paris, Carney stressed that "the future of Greenland and Denmark is decided solely by the Danish people."

Leaders from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Denmark issued a joint statement affirming that "Greenland belongs to its people." Tensions escalated Monday when White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told CNN that Greenland should become part of the United States, asserting "no one is going to fight the United States militarily over Greenland's future." This followed a social media post by his wife, Katie Miller, depicting Greenland in U.S. flag colors with the caption "SOON."

Trump told reporters on Sunday that the U.S. "needs Greenland from a national security standpoint," claiming "Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships everywhere." He added cryptically, "Let's talk about Greenland in 20 days," heightening fears of potential U.S. intervention. Frederiksen warned Monday that a U.S. attack on Greenland "would amount to the end of NATO," telling Danish TV2 it would end "the security assured since the end of World War II." Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen insisted late Monday that "we are not in a situation where we think there could be a takeover of the country overnight."

Carney's announcement reflects a calculated diplomatic step as Canada balances competing priorities. Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University, noted that Canada has "every interest in defending international law and opposing Trump-style bullying." Yet Béland described it as a "delicate balancing act" given upcoming mid-January talks with the U.S. to revise their free trade agreement. Simon, of Inuit heritage and Canada's first Indigenous governor general since 2021, previously served as ambassador to Denmark. The consulate opening marks the highest-level Canadian ministerial visit to Greenland in years.