NUK, Greenland — On a boat, surrounded by snow-covered mountains and icebergs in shades of blue, Qooqu Berthelsen points to the breaking sea ice as a worrisome sign. Now, though, something is worrying him and many Greenlanders as much as the retreating ice that endangers their livelihood. “My concern,” says the 23-year-old hunter, fisher, and tour company owner, “is that Trump will come and take Greenland.” He then repeats what has become a mantra for Greenlanders in the weeks since U.S. President Donald Trump pushed their Arctic homeland into the spotlight by threatening to take it over. “Greenlanders don’t want to be Danish. Greenlanders don’t want to be American,” Berthelsen says. “Greenland is not for sale.”

For some, it’s been dizzying, a rollercoaster of emotions since Trump’s threats. Around her, supporters gathered at a bay filled with giant pieces of ice in Nuuk waving the red and white national flag that represents the sun and the ice that covers most of Greenland. “I could feel that the ground will no longer ever be the same again,” she said. Journalists from afar have descended on Nuuk, asking locals what they think of Trump’s words. Never in the history of Greenland has its relationship with the outside world been contested. Though some may want to strengthen ties with the U.S., they want to remain as an independent self-governance.

Source: https://time.com/7264116/trump-greenland-denmark-independence-not-for-sale/