Greenland
Greenland is a self-governed Danish territory. Though both geographically and ethnically it is an Arctic island nation located in the continent of North America, politically and historically, Greenland is closely associated with Europe. Greenland was one of the Norwegian Crown colonies from the 11th century until 1814, when it was transferred to Denmark, although Norway and Denmark had been in a union for centuries. Greenland became an integral part of the Kingdom of Denmark in 1953. It was granted home rule by the Danish parliament in 1978; the law went into effect the following year. The Queen of Denmark, Margrethe II, remains Greenland's Head of State. Greenlandic voters subsequently chose to leave the European Economic Community upon achieving self-rule, so Greenland is not part of the European Union, despite Denmarkâs membership.
Most Greenlanders have both Kalaallit (Inuit) and Scandinavian ancestry, and speak Greenlandic (Kalaallisut) as their first language. Greenlandic is spoken by about 50,000 people, which is more than all the other Eskimo-Aleut languages combined. A minority of Danish migrants with no Inuit ancestry speak Danish as their first language. Both languages are official, with the West Greenlandic dialect forming the basis of the official form of Greenlandic.
Despite its small population, by virtue of its geographical position, Greenland is extremely significant with respect to environmental and strategic affairs.
Greenland is the world's largest island, and is the largest dependent territory by area in the world. It also contains the world's largest national park. About 81 percent of its surface is covered by ice, known as the Greenlandic ice cap. Nearly all Greenlanders live along the fjords in the south-west of the main island, which has a milder climate.
Greenland has a 31 member elected parliament. The head of government is the Prime Minister, who is usually the leader of the majority party in Parliament. Hans Enoksen is the current Prime Minister. A Greenlandic only speaker, he has been a member of the parliament of Greenland since 1995. He was elected prime minister on December 14, 2002, his party winning a mere 28%. After his election he began an alliance with left wing party, Inuit Ataqatigiit. The two parties began discussing how to change the agreement with Denmark and the USA about how much Greenland should receive in compensation for the US airbase situated outside the northern town of Thule.
Greenland suffered economic contraction in the early 1990s, but since 1993 the economy has improved. The Greenland Home Rule Government has pursued a tight fiscal policy since the late 1980s which has helped create surpluses in the public budget and low inflation. Since 1990, Greenland has registered a foreign trade deficit following the closure of the last remaining lead and zinc mine in 1990. Greenland today is critically dependent on fishing and fish exports; the shrimp fishing industry is by far the largest income earner. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. The public sector, including publicly owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in Greenland's economy. About half the government revenues come from grants from the Danish Government, an important supplement to the gross domestic product. GDP per capita is equivalent to that of the weaker economies of Europe.
A source of conflict between Greenland and Denmark has been the presence of the US military radar at Thule. Greenland is trying to loosen its economic dependence on Denmark. The prospect of large oil reserves under the island is fueling a renewed drive by Greenlander politicians for full independence from Denmark.
There is an on-going diplomatic sovereignty dispute between Canada and Greenland (represented internationally by Denmark) over the tiny Hans Island.
There are no known threats to travelers or expatriates in Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory with limited self-government and a tiny population.
