Macron to show support for Greenland on June 15 in the face of Trump's ambitions

French President Emmanuel Macron will make an official visit to Greenland on June 15. He intends to "strengthen cooperation" with this autonomous Danish territory coveted by Donald Trump, the Élysée Palace announced on Saturday, June 7. He will go there "at the invitation" of Greenland's Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, with whom he will meet "jointly," the Élysée Palace stated in a press release.

Emmanuel Macron, who also begins a two-day state visit to Monaco this Saturday ahead of the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, will be the first foreign head of state to visit Greenland since the US president's threats of annexation . He will then head to Canada, also coveted by Donald Trump, for a G7 summit. The three leaders will discuss "security in the North Atlantic and the Arctic, as well as issues related to climate change, the energy transition, and the security of supply of critical minerals," the French presidency said.

This trip aims to "strengthen cooperation" with Greenland in these areas and to "contribute to strengthening European sovereignty," she emphasized. The Danish Prime Minister welcomed this upcoming visit, "another concrete testimony to European unity" in the face of a "difficult foreign policy situation" for the kingdom, she noted in a press release.

Since returning to the White House in January, Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants to take possession of the vast Arctic territory , rich in mineral resources and strategically located, "one way or another." "We have to," he insists, without ruling out the use of force, citing reasons of "international security."

Its vice-president, JD Vance, visited the US military base at Pituffik in northwest Greenland on March 28, a trip that was seen as a provocation at the time. However, he had to cancel a visit to Greenland himself in the face of the outcry there and in Denmark.

JD Vance had accused Denmark of having "not done a good job for the people of Greenland" , not invested enough in the local economy and "not ensured its security well" . Denmark, for its part, insists that Greenland "is not for sale" . Addressing American leaders from the immense island, the First Lady had declared at the beginning of April: "You cannot annex another country" .

While Greenland's main parties support independence for the territory in the short or long term, none supports the idea of ​​joining the United States. The population—57,000, including more than 19,000 in the capital, Nuuk—which is predominantly Inuit, also rejects any prospect of becoming American, according to a poll published in late January.

In response to American ambitions, Denmark announced that it would devote two billion euros to strengthening security in the Arctic, a strategic area due to its proximity to Russia and the United States, and the North Atlantic. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot also mentioned sending European troops to ensure security in the Arctic as a "possibility," while noting that "it is not an immediate issue" for Copenhagen.

After leaving the French archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon on May 28, two French naval vessels sailed north along Greenland to "familiarize themselves with operations in the Arctic zone, an area of ​​growing strategic interest," the Ministry of the Armed Forces announced on June 3.

Highly strategic for American defense, Greenland is on the shortest trajectory for a missile launch toward Russia . With global warming and melting ice, it also lies in the path of new, highly sought-after shipping routes that could shorten commercial traffic.

This territory of two million km2, 85% of which is covered by ice, also has vast mineral reserves, including rare earths, and untapped oil reserves , but access to them is likely to be complicated.