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Greenlandic independence (Greenlandic:Namminersulivinneq) is a political ambition of mostpolitical parties (such asSiumut,Inuit Ataqatigiit,Naleraq, andNunatta Qitornai),advocacy groups, and individuals ofGreenland, anautonomous territory within theKingdom of Denmark, to become an independentsovereign state.
Greenland's present population are predominantlyInuit descended from theThule people who migrated from the North American mainland in the 13th century AD, gradually colonizing the island. The Danish claim to the island stems fromNorse settlement of southern Greenland which lasted from the 980s until the early 15th century.
Scholars believe that the earliest knownNorse settlements in Greenland originated fromIceland,[1] and thatErik the Red founded an early colony in 985.[2] TheKingdom of Norway later claimed and controlled Greenland singularly[clarification needed] from roughly 1261–1319.[3][4]
These Norse settlements vanished during the 14th and early 15th centuries,[5] leaving the Inuit as the sole occupants of the island, expanding to the southern and western coasts, and beingde facto independent for over 200 years until European peoples returned. Despite this, ade jure continuing European possession of Greenland was assumed by European peoples.
European contact with Greenland was not re-established until 1721 with the mission ofHans Egede, which was followed by theMoravian missions. These established enduring settlements and—after failing to find the Norse peoples—attempted toChristianize the Inuit.
By this timeNorway andDenmark had been unified underDenmark–Norway which considered Greenland part of its territory.[6] This ended on 14 January 1814 after Norway was ceded from Denmark as a result of theNapoleonic Wars in Europe. As a result of theTreaty of Kiel, Denmark resumed full sovereignty over Greenland soon after.[7] From 1814 to 1953, Greenland was a territory, not independent and not part of Denmark, but directly controlled by the Danish government.[6]
During theSecond World War, Denmark wasoccupied and controlled byNazi Germany between 1940 and 1945.[8] As a result, the US government signed an agreement withHenrik Kauffmann, the Danish ambassador to the US, to hand over defense and control of Greenland to the United States on 9 April 1941. The Danish government was shocked by Kauffmann's move, considered the agreement to be void and recalled Kauffmann from the US.[9][10] The first American troops arrived in Greenland on 7 July 1941.[11][12] The US builttwo airports with full-length runways. Until November 2024, with the renovation of theNuuk airport, they were the main international airports of Greenland, despite being located far from any traditional settlement.[13]
Greenland was effectively independent during the war years, and allowed the United States to build bases on its territory, in spite of the Danish pre-war neutrality. After the war the pre-war situation was restored, the US bases remained and Denmark, with Greenland as a part of the Kingdom, joinedNATO.[14]
In 1953, a newDanish Constitution incorporated Greenland into Denmark, the island thereby gained representation in theDanish Parliament and was recognized as a Danishprovince known as theCounty of Greenland.[15]
In 1972, at the request of theProvincial Council,Knud Hertling established a committee of Greenlandic members to study the possibility of increased local power. In 1975, the committee recommended a shift to home rule as quickly as possible.[16] Hertling responded with the creation of a Commission on Home Rule in Greenland with 14 members divided evenly between Greenlandic and Danish representatives. The commission's work submitted its final report in June 1978 with proposals for a Home Rule Act.[16]
In 1979, the Danish government grantedGreenland home rule, with Denmark keeping control of a number of areas including foreign relations, defense, currency matters, and the legal system in Greenland.[17][18]
Greenland's minimal representation in the Danish Folketing meant that, although over 70% of Greenlanders had opposed entry into the EuropeanCommon Market (EEC), it nevertheless joined in 1973 as part of Denmark. Greenlanders' fears that thecustoms union would allow foreign firms to compete andoverfish its waters were quickly realized. After home rule was secured, a bare majority (53%) of Greenland's population voted on 23 February 1982 to leave the EEC, a process which lasted until 1985. This resulted in theGreenland Treaty of 1985.[19]
In 2008, Greenland's citizens approved theGreenlandic self-government referendum with a 75% vote in favor of a higher degree of autonomy.[20] Greenland took control oflaw enforcement, thecoast guard, and the legal system. The official language changed from Danish toGreenlandic on 21 June 2009, with the day being celebrated asGreenland national day.[21] The act gives control offoreign relations of Greenland to the island in trade and other areas it is responsible for. Greenland has representatives in Copenhagen, Brussels, Reykjavik, and Washington, D.C.[22]
As part of the self-rule law of 2009 (section §21), Greenland can declare full independence if it wishes to pursue it, but it would have to be approved by a referendum among the Greenlandic people[23] and by the Danish parliament. It has been argued that because it was once a colony, under international law Greenland also has, separate from the 2009 law, theright of self-determination and could make aunilateral declaration of independence.[24] A poll in 2016 showed that there was a clear majority (64%) for full independence among the Greenlandic people,[25] but a poll in 2017 showed that there was a clear opposition (78%) if it meant a fall inliving standards.[26]
Greenland's former prime minister,Kuupik Kleist, has repeatedly expressed the need to diversifyGreenland's economy, which mainly relies on fishery, tourism and a substantial annualblock grant from the Danish state.[27][28] The block grant equals about two-thirds of Greenland's government budget[29] or about one-quarter of the entireGDP of Greenland.[30] Economic stability is seen as a basis for fullpolitical independence from Denmark.[31] WhenKim Kielsen was reelected with a strong majority as the leader of the largest Greenlandic pro-independence partySiumut in 2017, observers considered it a win for the "slow-independence" faction instead of the "now-independence" faction.[26] (His opponent,Vittus Qujaukitsoq, had argued for independence even if it meant losing the large annual block grant from the Danish state.)[32] During a debate in the Danish Parliament (which also includes members from Greenland) in 2018, Danish Prime MinisterLars Løkke Rasmussen said that Greenland needs to make it clear if they wish to remain a part of the Kingdom or become independent.[33] If Greenland were to become an independent country, the annual block grant from Denmark to Greenland would cease.[33]
In 2008, independence campaigners touted the year 2021 (the 300th anniversary of Danish colonial rule) as a possible date for independence.[34]
In 2023, a commission tasked with drafting a constitution for an independent Greenland presented its proposal.[35] In February 2024, the island officially declared that independence is the goal for Greenland.[36]
US PresidentDonald Trump's interest in Greenland has strengthened the cause of Greenland's independence from Denmark.[37]
At a press conference in early 2025, pro-independence prime ministerMúte Bourup Egede said that "work has already begun on creating the framework for Greenland as an independent state" and apparently hinted that anindependence referendum could take place as soon as April 2025, in tandem with thegeneral elections.[38][39] Greenland has never held an independence referendum, unlike neighbouring territories such as Iceland (in 1918), the Faroe Islands (in 1946) and Newfoundland (in 1948).
A poll in 2016 showed that there was a clear majority (64%) for full independence among the Greenlandic people.[25]
A 2017 poll showed that 78% of the population would oppose independence if it implied a lower standard of living.[40]
A 2019 poll showed that 67.8% of Greenlanders support independence from Denmark sometime in the next two decades.[41]
A 2025 poll showed that 84% of Greenlanders would support independence from Denmark, but 45% of the population would oppose independence if it meant a lower standard of living.[42]
The issue of Greenlandic independence features heavily in the eighth episode of the Swedish–Icelandic television seriesThin Ice (2019–2020). Written bySøren Stærmose andLena Endre, it was predominantly filmed in Greenland at the height of the Greenlandic winter.[43][44] By the end of the first season, Greenland achieves independence, with covert backing from the United States. Thepolitical system of the newly independent Greenland is not given, although the country is shown to have awarded an unnamed American oil companyoffshore drilling rights to a largedeep seaoil deposit.
Greenland 1261 1319.
Danish use of these terms was somewhat peculiar, as Greenland was already regarded a part of Danish-Norwegian territory since the independent Norse medieval communities in Greenland had agreed to pay taxes to the Norwegian king about AD 1260 (Norlund 1934:25). Iceland had also agreed to this status as a tributary country in the same period (Norlund 1934:24). From 1380 to 1814, Denmark and Norway formed one kingdom (Kirkegaard and Winding 1949:62; Gad 1984:206).
With the Treaty of Kiel (January 14, 1814), Denmark gave up all its rights to Norway to the king of Sweden. It did not, however, relinquish its rights to the old Norwegian dependencies of Iceland, the Faroes, and Greenland, as England strongly opposed any buildup of Swedish power in the North Atlantic. The Danes did not intend this agreement to end the union with Norway.
The U.S. and Danish governments signed an agreement whereby the American government agreed to take over the defense of Greenland in exchange for the right to construct air and naval bases on the island. On April 10, the U.S. established a protectorate over Greenland.
US troops landed there on July 7, relieving a British garrison for combat.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)In 1953, Greenland was established as a province of Denmark.
It wasn't until 2008 that Greenland's citizens voted in a non-binding referendum for increased independence from Denmark. In a vote of over 75% in favor, Greenlanders voted to reduce their involvement with Denmark. With the referendum Greenland voted to take control of law enforcement, the justice system, coast guard, and to share more equality in oil revenue. The official language of Greenland also changed to Greenlandic (also known as Kalaallisut).
With regard to a moratorium in the Arctic for oil drilling, he argued that Greenland needs to diversify its economy and in this aspect the mineral resources of Greenland subsoil is one possibility to create an economy, which is not entirely dependent on the annual block grant from Denmark.[permanent dead link]
'We're trying to develop a more diversified economy, we're looking at tourism, we're looking at mineral resources and of course we're still looking at developing the harvesting of living resources," Kleist said. "As it is today, we are very vulnerable.'
He said potential economic independence via the exports of natural resources could guarantee Greenland independence from Denmark.