Canada,France Open Greenland Consulates02/06 06:19

   

   NUUK, Greenland (AP) -- Canada and France planned to open diplomatic 
consulates Friday in the capital of Greenland, showing support for NATO ally 
Denmark and the Arctic island in the wake of U.S. efforts to secure control of 
the semiautonomous Danish territory.

   Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand was traveling to Nuuk to inaugurate 
the consulate that officials say also could help boost cooperation on issues 
like climate change and Inuit rights. She was being joined by Canada's 
Indigenous governor general, Mary Simon.

   France's Foreign Ministry said Jean-Nol Poirier also would take up his 
duties as consul general, making it the first European Union country to 
establish a consulate general in Greenland.

   Poirier will be "tasked with working to deepen existing cooperation projects 
with Greenland in the cultural, scientific, and economic fields, while also 
strengthening political ties with the local authorities," the ministry said.

   Canada pledged to open a consulate in Greenland in 2024, before Trump's 
recent talk of a takeover, and the formal inauguration was delayed from 
November because of bad weather.

   Anand met Danish counterpart Lars Lokke Rasmussen in Denmark on Thursday and 
posted on social media that "as Arctic nations, Canada and the Kingdom of 
Denmark are working together to strengthen stability, security, and cooperation 
across the region."

   France says the decision to open its diplomatic outpost was taken when 
President Emmanuel Macron visited in June.

   U.S. President Donald Trump announced in January he would slap new tariffs 
on Denmark and seven other European countries that opposed his takeover calls, 
only to abruptly drop his threats after he said a "framework" for a deal over 
access to mineral-rich Greenland was reached with NATO Secretary-General Mark 
Rutte's help. Few details of that agreement have emerged.

   Last week, technical talks started between the U.S., Denmark and Greenland 
to put together an Arctic security deal. The foreign ministers of Denmark and 
Greenland had agreed to create a working group during a meeting with U.S. Vice 
President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio before Trump made his 
tariff threats.