Greenland Minister Cries Over Trump's 'Purchase' Threat, Forgets Colonial History
Vivian Motzfeldt, Greenland’s Foreign Minister, reportedly wept under the “intense pressure” of a potential future US bid for the Danish territory. Her heartfelt distress, widely reported, conveniently skirts the issue that Greenland isn’t exactly a sovereign state; it’s an autonomous region of Denmark, itself a former colonial power. The US has, in fact, approached Denmark about purchasing
Greenland multiple times since 1867, not just under Trump. This performance of shock at a powerful nation wanting to acquire resource-rich land from a smaller, less powerful entity is a peculiar form of amnesia. Where were the tears when European powers carved up Africa, or when the US destabilized South America for bananas? This isn't about “threats to take territory”; it's the latest verse in
the old imperial song, sung again by a slightly less polite choirmaster. The difference now is the performance of outrage, not the underlying premise.