Arctic Encounter 2025: Greenlandic Top Diplomat in the US: "Everybody Knows about Greenland Now"
– Grønland er ikke bare et konsept, ikke bare en øy – vi har mye å tilby og bidra med når det gjelder samarbeid og partnerskap, sier leder for Grønlands representasjon i USA og Canada, Jacob Isbosethsen. (Foto: Hilde Bye / High North News).
Anchorage (High North News): "It's not a secret that this has been a special period – a challenging period – and something that we have not experienced before. One of my roles is to give all necessary information to relevant stakeholders in the US," says the Head of Greenland's Representation to the US to HNN.
“There are always a lot of things to talk about when people ask where you are from – and the answer is Greenland,” says Jacob Isbosethsen with a smile and a nod when High North News asks about his initial phase of being Greenland’s new top diplomat to the United States.
A little over a month ago, Isbosethsen embarked on the position in Washington D.C. as Head of Greenland's Representation to the US and Canada, coming from the same position in the Greenlandic representation to Beijing, China.
“It’s quite obvious, there has been a lot of attention. Not only in the US, but also in the rest of the world. Previously, very few would know about Greenland, but now, everybody knows," Isbosethsen continues and says the interest can be noticed even in the small things like going to a café or getting a taxi.
“It's up to us to engage and enlighten the discussion when we talk about Greenland," says Greenlandic diplomat Jacob Isbosethsen. (Photo: Hilde Bye).
Sharing information
HNN sat down with the experienced diplomat at the Arctic Encounter Summit in Anchorage, in the US Arctic state of Alaska.
The Representation of Greenland in the US aims to promote Greenland’s interests in North America, working on topics such as Arctic diplomacy, climate, trade, and critical minerals, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.
"It's not a secret that this has been a special period – a challenging period – and something that we have not experienced before. One of my roles is to give all necessary information to relevant stakeholders in the US, like politicians in the Congress and our partners in the Department of State and Department of Defense," Isbosethsen tells HNN.
Also read (Article continues below)
With regards to challenges, how do you react to the statements made by President Trump about wanting to annex Greenland?
"As the prime minister of Greenland has mentioned before; Greenland is of course not for sale. We have clearly stated that we don't want to be Danes, but we don’t want to be Americans, either," Isbosethsen points out.
What is important for you to convey to people in the US?
"It's important to state quite clearly that our construction within the Kingdom of Denmark is special and something that we value. Furthermore, it is something that we want to modernize. It is not a static thing," Isbosethsen says.
As HNN has reported, the modernization issue is, among other things, related to Greenland seeking more foreign policy authority and equality in the Danish Realm, consisting of Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland.
"Also," Isbosethsen continues, "it's important to convey that we are three different countries, three different peoples, three different parliaments, three different languages and cultures in the Kingdom of Denmark. At the same time, because we are part of the Kingdom of Denmark, we are part of NATO and the transatlantic alliance."

"I want to give a very clear signal from the Danish side that we are to modernize our Realm, and this is an ongoing dialogue. We must stick together in difficult times," said Denmark's PM Mette Fredriksen recently. To the right: the Faroese PM Aksel V. Johannesen and Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the Greenlandic PM. (Photo: Screenshot from press conference).
Expand cooperation
Isbosethsen highlights that Greenland has been a friend and ally to the US for over 80 years. The US has had several military bases in Greenland over the years; the current one is the Pitufikk Space Base, serving as the "eyes and ears for the homeland security of the US," he notes.
He also points to the defense agreement with the US from 1951 and later amendments, which already provides the framework for military discussions.
"We are more than interested to maintain and expand our partnership; it could be on minerals, militarily, or other areas. The US is one of our closest allies, and we are more than interested to further our cooperation," the diplomat adds.
That is something we are working on with the US.
A vulnerable situation
In a talk at the Arctic Encounter Summit, Isbosethsen highlighted the need for Greenland to diversify its economy and attract investments, such as in the mining sector.
"At the moment, around 90 percent of our exports derive from fish and fish products, and we need to diversify our economy. We are only 57,000 people on a large island, which is a vulnerable situation to be in, particularly with issues like climate change affecting the ocean. The government has decided to focus on tourism and the mining sector as supplements to our fisheries," he stated.
However, when it comes to US interest in the Greenlandic mining sector, there has not been much activity so far, HNN recently reported.
At the conference, Isbosethsen noted that out of the nearly 80 licenses for exploration or exploitation on Greenland, most were given to Canada, the UK, or Australia, with only one to the US.
"That is something we want to work on with Washington D.C, to hopefully have more cooperation and focus from American investors in the mining sector as well," he said.

From the in-depth conversation at the Arctic Encounter Summit with Greenlandic diplomat Jacon Isbosethsen about Greenland’s Evolving Role in the Arctic. The conversation was moderated by Senior News Anchor Libby Casey from The Washington Post. (Photo: Arctic Encounter).
On a broader note, how is the Greenlandic government now working in navigating international politics?
"We are cooperating with our closest friends. The newly elected government has clearly stated that our closest partner is the government of Denmark," says Isbosethsen while reiterating that this relationship is to be modernized.
"The EU is also one of our most important trading partners and a partner in other areas of cooperation. This is also a relationship that we are maintaining and expanding, not to mention the Free Trade Agreement with the UK that we have negotiated after Brexit. Furthermore, the US, Canada, and Iceland are our closest neighbors, and it is quite natural that we are working closely together with all these countries," he says.
Isbosethsen furthermore points to the important fishing industry and the emerging markets in Asia, including Japan, China, and South Korea.
"With a population of 57,000 people, I think it is quite well done that we are working with all these important and big countries. We are cooperating with quite a lot of friends and partners when it comes to trade and also expanding on other areas of cooperation like education, research, climate change, and not least the important work with the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) and our friends in Canada and Alaska."
"Whatever I can do to support this in DC is part of my role as well," Isbosethsen says in closing.