06-08-2025 - Greenland – a harsh, rugged, and inhospitable land.
When flying in from the sea, you begin to soar over the world’s second-largest ice sheet after Antarctica. The first stretches of coastline are jagged rock, and just a few kilometers inland, the ice begins—a white expanse, endless and majestic, stretching as far as the eye can see.
After hours of flight from the east coast to the west coast, the frozen land starts to darken. A little further on, you see bare stone mountains again—just a few thousand meters more, and there is the sea once again. The view is breathtaking, as remote and otherworldly as one could possibly imagine.
Icebergs drift across the deep-blue ocean, immense like floating islands. And yet, this nation is inhabited. The houses are colorful, and the land beneath is rich in resources.
Ilulissat is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of Disko Bay, its frozen fjord—the magnificent Kangia—its spectacular marine wildlife, its waterfalls, and its glaciers, so vast they are almost beyond imagination, constantly calving off awe-inspiring chunks of ice.
And here, the cold stings. This is a place where humans are merely guests... guests of nature, which here expresses the very peak of its power, its harmony, and its balance—unaffected by anything or anyone.
Visiting this island means understanding why it is currently under the spotlight of geopolitics. But it also helps one grasp how much truth and possibility lie in what is said about this country. So why not interview someone who represents its people? —So here is the interview below of the Mayor of Ilulissat, Mr. Lars Erik Gabrielsen, representative of the Municipality of Avannaata.
You are Ilulissat Mayor, When were the elections? What is your party?
"The elections were on the first of April. My party is the Social Democratic Party. 'Siumut' is the local name, the leading party, which has been in government for nearly 45 years. We have been part of the majority for many years, but this year support has declined significantly. However, in our municipal elections, we won in Avannaata Kommunia—which includes Ilulissat, Uummannaq, Upernavik, and Qaanaaq. We aim to gain another municipality in future elections. The Social Democratic election was on the first of April, and since the seventh of May, I have been serving as mayor."

Ilulissat has been Unesco Heritage site since 2004, for its frozen fjord, the Kangia, has this attracted more tourists?
"Yes. I’m not sure how much tourism has increased due to UNESCO. Now we have the Ice Fjord Centre; without the UNESCO site, we might not have it. But even when I was a child fifty years ago, there were always tourists here because of our beautiful icebergs and landscapes. UNESCO certainly attracts international tourists, but its exact economic value? I don’t know. We became a UNESCO site in 2004—I was elected to the municipality then—and we manage the UNESCO area collectively. But icebergs themselves are our biggest attraction. If you’re from Brazil and want to visit Greenland, you come to Ilulissat for the icebergs, not just UNESCO. Tourism has grown with hotels and traffic, but the icebergs remain our most valuable asset”.

How are tourism revenues invested in the city?
"Tourism impacts our local economy, but we fight against excessive foreign influence—especially from Denmark. Danish citizens run tourism here. For example, 'TUPILAK' claims to be a local company, but it's worldwide. Disco Line is also here, owned by them. Cruise ships recently docked here—using Danish-owned boats, not local ones. We protest against cruise ships because they’re unsustainable: big foreign companies profit, while we earn little. These companies exploit legal loopholes to move profits out of Greenland.
Worse, they claim to be 'local' on paper only. For instance, Albatross and Disco Line operate here but don’t engage with our community. We’re divided; we don’t even speak to each other. They treat us as spectators in our own land”.

Greenland is part of Denmark since 1953, what areas are its responsibility and in which areas do you have autonomy?
"Though we have a democratically elected government, we belong to Denmark and seek independence. The issue is: tourism revenue flows out, and our government follows too many Danish policies. Denmark limits our opportunities to develop independently. Moreover, when resources like oil or minerals are found, foreign companies extract them, then go bankrupt—leaving us no benefits. That’s why we’re skeptical about mining. Tourism generates nearly a billion in revenue, but local companies pay less than a million dollars in taxes annually. Even our water—the purest in the world—can’t be sold freely; European brands dominate our markets. We want independence to control our resources”.

You are Inuit, Inuit live in the Arctic regions of Alaska, Greenland, and Canada, about 10 Thousand years ago your Inuit ancestors migrated from northern Asia through the Bering strait... to which part of the world do you feel you belong? Do you feel close to your Alaskan, Canadian and Siberian brothers?
"While Inuit exist in Alaska and Canada, we belong solely to Greenland. I’ve never visited those regions— I’ve been to Denmark 25 times—but Greenland is my home. My father was French, but I was born here 57 years ago; this is where I choose to stay. Though we share cultural ties with Alaskan Inuit through events like sports, our identity is rooted here. Historically, we’ve been here for thousands of years”.

Your land, Greenland, is rich in resources, you posses "rare earths (REE)", precious tools, for more advanced technologies. Does Denmark exploit them? If so, what do you get in return?
“Since 2009, Greenland has had greater autonomy. Under the current agreement, the first 75 million DKK from mining revenues stays with us; profits beyond that are split 50-50 with Denmark. But we demand this changed—we want full ownership of mining operations.
Whether we pay nothing or more, we insist on equity. Otherwise, if companies like those backed by Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates extract our rare minerals (critical for tech), Denmark takes half. China controls 95% of these minerals, so the U.S. pressures us. Our stance: no fair share, no mining. Let resources stay underground”.

Could you exploit these resources by yourselves?
“We lack infrastructure and capital. Thus, we must partner with foreign companies but demand equity stakes to share profits. Otherwise, as past examples show, companies extract resources, go bankrupt, and we receive only employee taxes—no corporate revenue. Still, mining will likely happen soon.
Denmark resists U.S. involvement, but American firms are powerful. We’d prefer Alaska’s model: locals own shares in companies (non-transferable outside families). Denmark merely registers companies as 'local' overnight— this exploits us. That’s why independence sentiment grows. We refuse to let outsiders profit while locals bear costs”.

Trump says you will become the 51st US State, but what would be the difference between being that or belonging to the kingdom of Denmark?
“Regarding Trump’s comment about becoming the 51st U.S. state: We seek full independence with optional partnerships (e.g., with the U.S. military). But we won’t trade Danish rule for American. The core issue: Denmark blocks our development. For example, they vetoed Chinese investment in airports (then delayed construction), yet profit from our fish exports to China.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has protected Greenland since WWII. Denmark knows our strategic value—it’s why they limit our ties to powers like China or the U.S. Unless Denmark invests seriously in our infrastructure (roads, housing, healthcare), independence is inevitable. Even Danish/Swedish politicians heard this recently”.

In your opinion, between Israel and Palestine the solution could be two peoples and two States?
“On Israel-Palestine I support a two-state solution. What’s happening in Gaza—starvation, civilian shootings—is inhumane. Hamas is wrong, but Israel’s response is disproportionate.
This isn’t war; it’s ethnic destruction. A two-state deal was nearly reached under Sharon with U.S. support, but Netanyahu rejected it. Now, millions suffer. As Greenlanders, we’ve never known war; such violence is unthinkable”.