Larramendi talks with Mario Viciosa on the Onda Cero and Newtral podcast ‘This has not happened’ about the sentiment of the Greenlandic people, “which has never been anti-American”, but which has changed in recent weeks. “Trump had the opportunity to win people’s souls. Maybe a year ago. Not anymore.”
In his view, there was a favorable breeding ground: resentment toward Denmark for its colonial past is palpable, and Greenlanders openly talk about “cutting off the yoke.” Larramendi explains in ‘This has not happened’ that “the possibility of winning Greenland with diplomacy existed”, because they want to improve and also better exploit its resources.
What is the US (and China) looking for in Greenland and why is it not so easy to get it?
The US military presence in Greenland is not new. Since 1941, when the US took control after the Nazi occupation of Denmark, it has maintained troops on the island. “Everyone has worked at the Thule base. There has always been a cordial relationship.” But now there are other powers in the fray and climate change is accelerating unthinkable processes.
Winter sea ice has gone from 7 million square kilometers to 4 million since the 1970s, opening up passages that until recently were unimaginable. “Last year, China sent the first serious container ship along the Arctic route. By the end of this decade, it has hundreds scheduled,” says Larramendi. The northern route significantly shortens navigation times and Beijing does not want to be left out.
But it’s not just about trade. This facilitates mining exploitation, especially of rare earths and even uranium. Breaking with Denmark, in the view of some Greenlanders, could ease restrictions for environmental reasons, for example. Also in terms of fishing, given that “its economy is not doing well” and it is “very dependent on marine resources, which are overexploited.”
But the exploitation of what Greenland hides would not be so simple, “because this is an extreme territory”, as he remembers in ‘This has not happened’. Larramendi confesses to Mario Viciosa the times when he himself has felt death very closely, at less than 50 degrees below zero. “Become your ally.”
The explorer reduces credibility to any military invasion scenario in remote areas. “How would this invasion physically take place? Do you arrive at a town of 600 fishermen and put 5,000 soldiers there? The Marines arrive and invite them to a coffee because ‘you’ll be cold,'” he ironically says. “Greenlanders know that outsiders come and go, it has always been that way.” Although now, climate change seems to be changing the rules of the game.
