Aqqaluk Lynge, 79, takes his own map from the shelves to talk about geopolitics, Donald Trump, and the fear that Greenland will become the next Venezuela. This image, which he carefully unfolds, is a bird’s-eye view of the planet where Greenland is at the center, with the United States and Europe barely visible. In the 1980s, he dreamed that this giant Arctic island would one day be independent from Denmark. He was one of the central voices of the Inuit community— which represents 90% of the population — and the one who laid the groundwork for the Self-Determination Act, enacted in 2009.
Today, with Trump seeking to “conquer” Greenland, the former president of the Inuit Circumpolar Council acknowledges that his dream of independence “has vanished”: “The world has changed a lot, and independence today only interests the MAGA movement, which would find it easier to invade us. Union with Denmark is our only way to confront them. That’s how it works now.”
This political shift, he explains, also stems from his patriotism for the Inuit people. “The political scene is a fight for our people’s survival; it’s about being able to continue existing. We’re one blink away from being invaded, and that would annihilate us as a people,” he laments.
Lynge explains that the Inuit worldview and the extreme capitalism promoted by Trump are radically opposed. Greenland’s self-government does not allow private land ownership, its community is governed by a very horizontal hierarchy, and it maintains the principle of sharing the food of those who hunt among the extended family and neighbors. “Trump here would probably be thinking about playing golf on the ice or naming an iceberg after himself. What he’s doing in the world has little to do with what his country wants. Global security is at risk simply because of his personal whims,” says the writer, ironically.
For this reason, Lynge insists that Americans, who will vote in the midterm elections next November, are the only people capable of stopping Trump. He recalls that ties with the United States have always been “strong and friendly” and calls the Republican president’s ambitions for Greenland a betrayal. “Americans need to ask themselves why on earth they are making Greenland their enemy,” says Lynge in a video call. “It’s absurd.”
In Greenland, the U.S. threat has been strongly opposed by the people. In January 2025, when Trump began talking about his intentions to buy or invade the Arctic island at any cost, a poll was conducted to gauge the sentiment of Greenlanders. At least 85% of the population voted “no” to a U.S. annexation. A year after the poll, Lynge is certain that the percentage has increased.
A segment of the Inuit population on the island, however, disagrees with the position of strengthening ties with Denmark and believes that, now that the world’s attention is focused on Greenland, it is time to fight for full independence. “We said no. We’re saying it again,” is the message of a recent video by Inuit activist Tupaarnaq Kopeck. “Denmark hasn’t done right by us. But don’t come here and pretend America would,” she says in another video addressed to U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. “Stop making decisions about us, without us.”
On Wednesday, while Lynge was speaking with EL PAÍS, Vance and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio were meeting at the White House with representatives from the Danish and Greenlandic governments. Vivian Motzfeldt, the island’s foreign affairs advisor (who is also Inuit), lamented the continued differences in their positions: Copenhagen reiterated that any cession of sovereignty is non-negotiable, while Trump remained firm in his intentions.
“For me, the victory of this conversation would be a second one,” says the Inuit leader. “I hope the diplomatic approach with the United States will give us a brief respite. At least until the next explosion from above.”
‘An American wouldn’t last a year in Greenland’
Denmark, which is responsible for Greenland’s defense, warned that an attack on the island would mean the end of NATO. Likewise, NATO partners such as Germany, France, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Norway announced joint military exercises in response to Washington’s offensive. Canada and France have also pledged to open consulates in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, in the coming weeks. This European presence has given Lynge a sense of relief. “It is the security of the European Union that is at stake. If they do this to us, who will be next? The actions of the White House are changing the world,” says Lynge.
The Inuit have been resisting in the Arctic for over a millennium. Descendants of the Thule, they coexisted with the Vikings who arrived around the year 900 and achieved virtually autonomous government from Denmark in 1979, after decades of colonization. Today they are the most sovereign Indigenous people in the region.
Lynge insists that only Greenlanders are capable of surviving in the island’s conditions and making the best use of its resources. “An American wouldn’t last a year here,” he says. That’s why Trump’s ideas of plundering all the island’s mineral wealth strike him as just another one of his absurdities. “Here, the snow still covers everything. Mining is impossible in many areas, and extremely expensive and complex in others. It wouldn’t just require billions, but decades,” he argues. “We know better than anyone how to develop Greenland. We Greenlanders are going to be the ones who take care of and develop the country.”
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