Greenland really should be worried!

Greenland PM Tells People to Prepare for Possible Invasion

Greenland’s prime minister said the Arctic island’s population and its authorities need to start preparing for a possible military invasion, even as it remains an unlikely scenario, as President Donald Trump continues to threaten taking over the territory.

“It’s not likely there will be a military conflict, but it can’t be ruled out,” Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a press conference in capital Nuuk on Tuesday.

Greenland’s government will form a task force consisting of representatives of all relevant local authorities to help people prepare for any disruptions to daily life, Nielsen said. The government is working on distributing new guidelines to the population, including a recommendation to have enough food for five days stored in their homes.

Trump has said he needs to own Greenland for security reasons and had earlier on Tuesday posted an AI-generated image of himself planting a US flag on the island. Greenland, with a population of 57,000, is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, but has its own government overseeing most aspects of life bar defense and foreign policy. Denmark has in recent days deployed more troops in Greenland to boost Arctic defense.

Greenland is under “a lot of pressure” and “we need to be ready for all scenarios,” Mute B. Egede, the island’s minister of finance and former leader, said at the same news conference.

Meanwhile, Canada’s military has modeled how it would respond to an American invasion after Trump publicly talked about the country as a potential 51st state, according to a report in the Globe and Mail, which cited unidentified officials who stressed they consider a US invasion to be highly unlikely.

In a move to shore up security of the territory, Denmark and seven other NATO countries last week deployed a handful of officers on the island as part of the Operation Arctic Endurance. Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command will now expand the military exercises to potentially run year-round, a Greenlandic newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The US president on Saturday threatened to impose new tariffs from Feb. 1 on the eight North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies that are sending military personnel, escalating tensions between Washington and Europe. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday warned Europe would have to respond if the tariffs are implemented and that there could be “major consequences” on both sides of the Atlantic.

“If a trade war is launched against us, which I cannot recommend, then we must of course respond. We would be forced to do so,” she said during a question and answer session in the Danish parliament. “I hope we do not get to that point. I hope that we succeed in convincing the Americans that this is not the path we should take.”

Well, we have a concept of a deal. I think it's gonna be a very good deal for the United States also for them and we're gonna work together on something having to do with the Arctic as a whole but also Greenland and it has to do with the security, great security, strong security, and other things.

Avaaraq Olsen tells content creators to think before making jokes after German tried to raise Stars and Stripes in Nuuk

The mayor of Greenland’s capital has called on media professionals and content creators to act responsibly after a German comedian’s failed attempt to hoist the US flag.

Maxi Schafroth, 41, a Bavarian comic, tried to run up the Stars and Stripes on a flagpole near the cultural centre in Nuuk but was confronted by angry passersby.

When questioned he claimed to be a US official, before leaving to disapproving looks from local people, according to an Agence France-Presse journalist at the scene. Local media said Schafroth was reported to the police and fined.

Avaaraq Olsen, the mayor of Sermersooq district, which includes the capital, was outraged. “Raising a flag at our capital cultural centre, the flag of a military superpower that for weeks has been implying military force against our country, is not a joke. It is not funny. It is immensely harmful,” she said in a statement.

Olsen said Greenlanders, particularly children, were worried and afraid about the current situation. “When you amplify those fears for content, clicks or laughs, you are not being bold or creative. You are adding to the distress of an already vulnerable population,” she said.

“So, pause before you film. Think before you stage something ‘funny’. Consider whether your next question or stunt will inform the world or simply make a child cry or a family feel less safe in their own country.”

Greenland’s government is working to alleviate the stress and anxiety among the population caused by Donald Trump’s repeated threats to seize the Arctic territory.

Schafroth is known in Germany for his involvement in the satirical programme Extra Drei, which is broadcast on the NDR channel and attracts more than 1 million viewers. In a statement to Germany’s Der Spiegel and the Ritzau agency, the channel expressed its regrets after the incident.