{"id":28797,"date":"2026-02-02T06:36:57","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T06:36:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=28797"},"modified":"2026-02-02T06:37:01","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T06:37:01","slug":"under-pressure-greenlands-pm-gains-fans-at-home-and-abroad-after-his-rebuke-of-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/?p=28797","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Under pressure\u2019: Greenland\u2019s PM gains fans at home and abroad after his rebuke of Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Jens-Frederik Nielsen, impressed Danes with his handling of the crisis but he says many Greenlanders are \u2018afraid and scared\u2019<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This time last year, Greenland\u2019s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, was better known on the global stage for his sporting achievements than international politics. For years, he dominated the territory\u2019s badminton scene, winning the singles and doubles championships almost every year. He won several medals at the Island Games, earning himself a reputation for \u201cvery competitive\u201d play on the court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As it turned out, that was useful preparation for his time in office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 34-year-old was sworn in last April after winning a surprise election victory fought against the backdrop of Donald Trump\u2019s threats to acquire<\/a> his homeland. Those threats morphed into a full-blown crisis this year when, fresh from his seizure of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro from Caracas, the US president reiterated his desire for Greenland and initially refused to rule out taking it by force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Greenland\u2019s<\/a>
Greenland\u2019s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, often sports a blue anorak in keeping with Greenlandic formal attire. Photograph: Tom Little\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Europe\u2019s biggest crisis since the Second World War saw Nielsen, who often sports a blue anorak in keeping with Greenlandic formal attire, thrust into the geopolitical spotlight. He seems to have weathered the storm: Greenlanders say that, after Trump pulled back from threats of military intervention at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the young leader has more of a voice on the world stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A key moment in Nielsen\u2019s handling of the rapidly escalating crisis came in January, on the eve of a tense meeting in Washington DC with the U.S. vice president, JD Vance. \u201cIf we have to choose between the US and\u00a0Denmark<\/a>\u00a0here and now,\u201d he said, \u201cwe choose Denmark, Nato and the EU\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aqqaluk Lynge, a veteran of Greenlandic politics who co-founded the party Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA), said shortly afterwards it was the moment Greenlanders had been waiting for. \u201cI don\u2019t know if I could have done that when I was his age,\u201d he told the Guardian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Jens-Frederik<\/a>
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, left, in Paris with France\u2019s president, Emmanuel Macron, centre, and Denmark\u2019s prime minister, Mette Frederiksen. Photograph: Ludovic Marin\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Nielsen grew up in Nuuk, the capital of the semi-autonomous Danish territory, with a Greenlandic mother and Danish father. He speaks both languages, which some say helps him to see both sides of the relationship between Greenland and its former colonial ruler, Denmark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has previously said he was bullied in school for looking Danish. On the badminton court, however, he flourished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2020, aged 28, having helped shape its direction as a consultant while studying social sciences at the University of Greenland in Nuuk, he became chair of his party, the centre-right Democrats. \u201cEven I probably wouldn\u2019t have seen it coming so soon. But the opportunity presented itself and I jumped at the chance because I want this,\u201d he told the newspaper Sermitsiaq the same year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a short period he had a government position as minister of industry and mineral resources but lost it when he withdrew his party from the government. Then, last March, the Democrats more than tripled their seats<\/a> to become the biggest party in the Inatsisartut, the Greenlandic parliament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weeks later, just hours before Vance arrived in Greenland at the US\u2019s Pituffik space base, Nielsen and the leaders of three other parties announced a broad four-party coalition government in a show of national unity. In a clear rebuke to Trump\u2019s threats, the first page of the coalition agreement stated: \u201cGreenland belongs to us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nielsen\u2019s straightforward style and clear messaging seem to be impressing leaders in the rest of Europe. This week, he was received by the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, and the French president, Emmanuel Macron, side by side with Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have some red lines we cannot cross. From a Greenlandic perspective, we will try to sort out some sort of agreement,\u201d he said in Paris. \u201cWe have been working with the US for many years now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/a>
A campaign poster of Jens-Frederik Nielsen of the Demokraatit party for Greenland\u2019s legislative elections hangs in the center of Nuuk, Greenland, April 2021. Photograph: Christian Klindt Soelbeck\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Alongside the pragmatism, Nielsen painted a vivid picture of the fear and stress of the unprecedented situation. \u201cWe are under pressure, serious pressure,\u201d he said, adding that many in Greenland were \u201cafraid and scared\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Government figures in Denmark appreciate his style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A source close to the Foreign Office said his comments about choosing Copenhagen over the US were appreciated. \u201cIn the Danish public, he is a very well-liked figure, and people are very impressed that he has been able to handle it under pressure and young.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His good rapport with Frederiksen also helps. \u201cHe is a great guy, and he has a great chemistry with the Danish prime minister and Danish government in general, so we are pleased it is him in office,\u201d said the source.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aaja Chemnitz Larsen, a Greenlandic member of the Danish parliament and representative of IA,<\/strong> who has known Nielsen since he was a child, said she thought he was doing \u201can amazing job\u201d on the global stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It takes courage to do what he has done, she said: \u201cHe is a young leader and a leader gaining experience as we speak, so of course it is a big task.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reference Link:- https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jan\/31\/greenland-prime-minister-jens-frederik-nielsen-rebuke-trump<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jens-Frederik Nielsen, impressed Danes with his handling of the crisis but he says many Greenlanders are \u2018afraid and scared\u2019 This time last year, Greenland\u2019s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, was better known on the global stage for his sporting achievements than international politics. For years, he dominated the territory\u2019s badminton scene, winning the singles and doubles […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[24120,10209,26622,23972,26621,26620,26619],"class_list":["post-28797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-aside","hentry","category-sample-category","tag-critical-minerals-2","tag-green-land","tag-jens-frederik-nielsen","tag-president-trump-3","tag-rare-erath-metals","tag-rich-in-minerals-2","tag-sovereignty","post_format-post-format-aside"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28797"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28797\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28799,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28797\/revisions\/28799"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gsrra.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}