- Culture
- 05 Jan 26
Björk calls for Greenland to claim sovereignty following Trump threats
Björk says the thought that Greenlanders "might go from one cruel coloniser to another is too brutal to even imagine", following Trump's recent statements.
Björk took to social media today to call for Greenland to declare independence from Denmark.
The Icelandic singer's comments follows statements made by US President Donald Trump, in which he stated he wishes to annex Greenland due to its strategic location amid the US's recent invasion of Venezuela. He additionally claimed that Russian and Chinese ships have been "all over" Greenland's coast.
Greenland is considered a territory of Denmark, becoming a colony in 1721, and is thus represented in NATO through Denmark.
Björk suggested Iceland's own independence from Denmark in 1944 as a model for Greenland to follow. She also highlighted Denmark's past treatment of Greenlanders, including a campaign between 1966 and 1970 that forced Greenlandic women (including girls as young as 12) to use contraceptive coils, as well as a more recent child protection policy that required parents to take psychometric tests as an assessment of whether their children should be removed from their care.
Critics believes these psychometric test disproportionately effect Greenlandic communities within Denmark.
"Colonialism has repeatedly given me horror chills up my back, and the chance that my fellow Greenlanders might go from one cruel coloniser to another is too brutal to even imagine," said the electronic artist in closing. "úr öskunni í eldinn", like we say in Icelandic. Dear Greenlanders, declare independence!"
The prime minister of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, also responded to Trump's statements.
"That's enough now," he wrote to Facebook. "No more pressure. No more insinuations. No more fantasies of annexation"
- Read Björk's statement below:
i wish all greenlanders blessing in their fight for independence
icelanders are extremely relieved that they managed to break from the danish in 1944 ,
we didn´t loose our language ( my children would be speaking danish now )
and i burst with sympathy for greenlanders ,… pic.twitter.com/UgbKOx6E3A— björk (@bjork) January 5, 2026
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