Greenlanders say ‘f*** you’ to ‘nuts’ Trump and claim ‘we can’t be bought’

Greenlanders are reacting with rage to Trump’s comments on taking over the island, claiming they value their freedom too much to be ‘bought’ or ‘invaded’

Greenlanders have pledged to follow the example of Braveheart hero William Wallace by defending their “freedom” in the face of threats from Donald Trump to assert US control.

As the president vows to take over the huge North Atlantic island, proud locals in the capital Nuuk have sent a determined message that their home is not up for grabs.

Morten Meller, 60, said: “No. He cannot do this. We must have our FREEDOM!” Drinking in Daddy’s bar with other fishermen, he told the Daily Record: “Donald Trump thinks he can buy us, pay money for us, but we are human beings. We cannot be bought.”

Everyone spoken to in the capital’s snowbound streets was hostile to Trump. Scallop fisherman Peter Hessner pointed at ravens by the side of the road. “He’s nuts,” he said. “Everyone knows it, even the birds know it.”

Like most Greenlanders, he would like independence. But many believe that now is not the right time economically – and virtually everyone said a takeover by America would be a disaster.

“We want to run our own country, to be independent of other countries, including Denmark,” he said. “We don’t want an even worse arrangement than the one we have. If I was offered independence tomorrow I would take it but I wouldn’t take a deal to be part of America for any amount of money. We want our freedom.”

Peter said Greenland could stand on its own. “We have a lot of minerals and we have a lot of fish in the sea… I don’t think Donald Trump will mess around with NATO – but you never know when you’re dealing with someone who is crazy.”

Student Malik Jensen, 17, wanted to pass on a message to Donald Trump from the young people of Nuuk. “My message is this: f*** you. I’m mad about this as we don’t want the Americans here. We don’t want our country to be invaded and we don’t want to get annexed – whatever that means. People are afraid right now.”

Malik, who aims to study animation in Denmark and bring his skills back to Greenland, said no amount of money could persuade him or other Greenlanders to accept Donald Trump or the US as a sovereign power. “People are angry and they won’t accept it,” he said. “Our country is beautiful and we believe that culture and history are more important than money.”

Student Malik Karlsen, 16, said young Greenlanders all see Trump as a bully. But he is among the few who fears that Trump could actually launch a military takeover. “I thought his threat of force was a bluff at first but after what he did with Venezuela’s president, I don’t think it’s a bluff,” he said.

Malik, who lived in Denmark for four years, said he feels people in Nuuk are scared. “We need to get the health service sorted out but not at that price,” he said.

Removal man Mohammed Lundblad, 35, served as NATO soldier from the age of 19 to 23. He said the military alliance is now being tested. “NATO has to be strong here because there are more soldiers at its command and it must be aware of its own strength,” he said. “The USA has more firepower but I don’t think it will ever come down to that.”

Petrina Lange, 29, is a mother of one with another on the way. The Inuit wouldn’t wish her children to live under any other nation’s dominion. “I have no idea what the USA will do next. I think almost everyone I know would like to see an independent Greenland. We don’t want to be part of America.”

During the trip to Nuuk, it takes several hours to find even one voice in favour of Donald Trump’s plans. But 35-year-old Julio Sangreen, drinking with other men near the entrance to Nuuk’s shopping mall, sees the president as a solution to Greenland’s social problems.

Unemployed Julio said: “We want Trump. We want America because we need money. I have no money for even food yet our country would be very rich if we deal with Trump.”

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