Hans Peder Kirkegaard, former specialist consultant in defense and security policy for the Government of Greenland and now a researcher in the field of security policy, states in KNR’s debate “Nunarsuatsinni pisut”, that Denmark and Greenland should find common ground ahead of the meeting with the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, next week.
Hans Peder Kirkegaard points out that the preparations are already causing concern, also in the media. Naalakkersuisoq appears conciliatory, while Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen takes a more confrontational line. According to Kirkegaard, this raises the question of why the parties do not speak with one voice.
“Normally, officials coordinate their messages and agree on who says what and how it is handled. But if you have to meet next week, it is crucial that you can enter the meeting with a common Danish-Greenlandic position,” he says.
He emphasizes that it requires honesty on the Danish side and a sincere respect for Greenland. There should be a real common understanding and a clear agreement about what is said before the meeting, during the meeting and afterwards.
According to Kirkegaard, the problem is precisely that there currently does not seem to be agreement. He refers, among other things, to the fact that no Greenlandic representatives participated in a recent meeting in the Folketing, where security policy was discussed. Here, it was only the members of the Danish Parliament who discussed the situation based on an overarching goal of protecting the cohesion of the Commonwealth.
He points out that Greenland’s desire for increased independence in that context can be perceived as a security policy risk from the Danish side. When, at the same time, there is talk internationally – including from the USA – of either increased Greenlandic independence or a closer association with the USA, it is perceived in Denmark as a threat to the Commonwealth and Denmark’s position.
“No matter how you spin it, it will be seen as a weakening of the Kingdom of Denmark,” he says.
This is exactly why Kirkegaard believes that Denmark must be honest and that Greenland and Denmark have to stand together. If the parties go into next week’s meeting without knowing what they want to say – and without a common line afterwards too – it can have serious and negative consequences.
