It takes a lot of impress Greenlandic people who have experienced some amazing history over the centuries.
“It’s the land of big things, including icebergs the size of skyscrapers,” Member of Parliament Kuno Fencker proudly told The Toronto Sun. “That’s maybe why when I went on vacation to see the Grand Canyon in the United States, although it was impressive, it seemed small in a way.”
That said, an airplane flying in from Florida one week ago, was no small thing.
Greenland has seen the United States Army liberate the Edelweiss II weather station outpost on the island from the Germans during the Second World War, and there has been some treacherous snowstorms. But, said Fencker, not in the rich history of Greenland had there ever been a day like what happened last Tuesday.
“It was quite a sight to see Trump Force One land in Nuuk,” said Fencker.
When Donald Trump Jr., son of incoming President Donald Trump, and his friends got off the plane and looked around the capital, Nuuk, there was pure excitement.
It was the stuff of movies, albeit not the first time they have been on the silver screen. There was the famous scene of Kristen Wiig and Ben Stiller in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, which featured Greenland’s scenery and the one called Nuuk, by Filipino director Veronica Velasco.
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But the Trump Jr. visit was a real life movie everybody got to star in.
“People loved it,” said Fencker. “Greenland has spent millions on tourism and business campaigns before, but never got as much attention as this visit brought.”
Needless to say, they took it better than Canada did with Trump’s 51st state barbs or even the suggestions America could use military and economic power to gain control of the Panama Canal or rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.
In Greenland, said Fencker, any discussion to improve people’s lives is something they are pleased to put on the table for discussion. As he told Newstalk 1010 morning show host John Moore, “with 3,000 kilometres of land with oil and minerals” there are “many interesting possibilities.”
Whatever happens, Fencker told the Sun, thanks to the 45th and soon to be 47th president, Greenland is already preparing for more tourists and business inquiries just based on the buzz and coverage a week ago.
“It’s a great place to come to,” he said. “If you like fishing, you have a 100% chance to catch a fish.”
And if you like see “whales” or “icebergs” or go to an arctic spa, they have got all of that in abundance and a warm people with “great food” and “great restaurants.”
The first son, who handed out Make America Great Again (MAGA) hats and got his father on the phone, experienced that firsthand.
“Greenland loves America and Trump,” he posted to X. “Incredible people with an equally awesome reception. They just want to be able to utilize some of the incredible resources that they have and allow themselves, their country, and their kids to flourish.”
Most Greenlanders loved the visit. The best part, said Fencker, was how respectful Trump and his pal, Charlie Kirk, were with the people there.
“This was a visit of ordinary people,” said Fencker. “We have had the King of Denmark here before, but that was about meeting the government and important people, where Donald Trump Jr. was with regular citizens.”
Many of the country’s 57,000 residents, which include 950 Filipinos, 350 Thai and 6,000 Danes, wanted to soak up this unique day.
And it had nothing to do with Greenland potentially being sold to America. Greenland, said Fencker, is not for sale in the way other pieces of land would be. However, it’s open to arrangements or affiliations that will improve the lives of people there.
“We want the right to have our independence,” he said, adding while there is an agreement with Denmark to achieve that, the next step is to make that official.”
Once that’s done, they can make a deal with the United States or other countries interested in doing business. America, he said, is already well established on the “largest island in the world.” They have a Space Force base there.
“Denmark annexed us in 1953,” he said, adding while they do have a decent relationship with its current prime minister, as a rule the Greenlandic people feel like “second and third class” citizens and “don’t feel we are treated that well.”
Needless to say, when the Trump White House not only shows interest but comes calling, there’s interest.
“We have learned a lot and I don’t see an arrangement like they have with Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands,” said Fencker.
However, he does see the potential of an agreement with the U.S. that can he written out and voted on by the people of Greenland. In the meantime, he said, Greenland would also like to see a closer relationship with Canada, as well.
“We are neighbours,” he said, adding some of Greenland’s Indigenous population are “related” to the Canadian First Nations and “used to be able to visit by dog sled” but “they can’t do that anymore without lots of paperwork.”
Perhaps this could be the kind of thing that could change with new arrangements. For now, Greenland is expecting more people to come to their beloved Island – including, perhaps, America’s next president, Donald J. Trump.