Live from Nuuk: Is Trump backing down?

Summary

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The Monocle Daily: “Live from Nuuk: Is Trump Backing Down?”

Broadcast Date: January 21, 2026
Location: Catuaq, The Greenland Cultural Center, Nuuk
Host: Andrew Muller
Panelists: Nukaluk Joe Kleist (CEO of Pikayala, former director of Catuaq), Diego Arizpoleta (Spain’s national broadcaster), Alexis Self (Monocle’s Foreign Editor)
Correspondents/Guests: Carlotta Rebelo (Monocle's Senior Foreign Correspondent, live from Davos), Jurgen Baijkastrup (CEO, Hotel Hans Egede), Casper Frank Muller (CEO and Co-Founder, Raw Arctic)

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Episode Overview

Main Theme:
The episode examines President Donald Trump’s latest remarks on his intentions regarding Greenland, assessing whether Greenlanders and the international community are reassured by his apparent unwillingness to “take Greenland by force.” Broadcasting live from Nuuk, the panel explores local, European, and global reactions, dives into the mood on the ground, and investigates how geopolitical tension is impacting Greenland’s business climate and tourist trade.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. President Trump’s Remarks at Davos ([06:14], [08:19])

• Trump stated:

  “We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won’t do that.” ([06:47])

• The panel questions the credibility and durability of this statement given Trump's unpredictability.

Notable Quotes:

• Andrew Muller: “Is anyone in Greenland or anywhere else reassured? Is it clear to anyone what Trump's immediate negotiations would look like or who they'd be with? And has all of this nonsense at least been good for Greenland's tourist trade?” ([00:07])

• Carlotta Rebelo (Davos):

  “The great thing about Trump that we all know is the unpredictability... just having that out of the way [his ruling out force] was a big relief.” ([08:43])
  "...the speech was basically telling off everybody for not being grateful enough. Denmark is not grateful enough, Venezuela is not grateful enough... you name a nation and probably he’ll have some grievance." ([09:17])

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2. Local Perspective: Mood, Anxiety, and Government Guidance ([05:15], [10:00])

• The atmosphere in Nuuk is tense. Residents oscillate between worry and resignation; repeated shifts in US policy cause anxiety.

Key Points:

• Greenlanders are “almost scared of what may happen,” noticing a decisive shift from dismissiveness to concern over the past year.
  — Diego Arizpoleta:

  “Last year… people didn’t think he was serious and they kind of joked about what he meant about Greenland. Now… Greenlanders are almost scared of what may happen.” ([04:55])

• Government response has included emergency preparedness messaging:
  — Lex Self:

  “The government can assure the people that they have enough medical supplies, enough food and enough water to last for five days… the mood was a bit lighter than it had been yesterday.” ([05:15])

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3. European and International Reactions ([13:13], [15:19])

• Canada’s PM Mark Carney’s speech in Davos is referenced, suggesting “the old order is over.” NATO and European leaders are struggling to manage the uncertainty and lack of reliability from Trump.

• European sensitivity to threats:
  — Nukaluk Joe Kleist:

  “…for a year now, the focus has been that the US is such an important ally… But… you also have to have some kind of a limit at some point and say, well, this is the limit. If you do this, we will do that.” ([15:19])

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4. On the Ground: Nuuk’s Atmosphere – “Vox Populi” ([17:29]-[21:39])

• Lex Self conducted interviews in Nuuk to capture the mood:
  • Some unbothered, trusting long-standing legal protocols (“You can’t just take another country.” – [20:03])
  • Others overtly anxious (“I hate his rhetoric. I hope he doesn’t buy us.” – [20:51])
• Emergency siren test caused some alarm among non-locals, though locals reassured this is standard procedure.

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5. Business and Tourism Impact

a. Hotelier’s Perspective ([22:21]-[26:47])

• Jurgen Baijkastrup (Hotel Hans Egede CEO): Uptick in business from the press, military, and police; typically quiet winter now busy due to world attention.
• Increase in short-term business but summer tourist bookings see some cancellations due to fears about instability.

  “Normally in January hotel business is low. But this January… we have reporters, military, police from all over the world.” ([22:42])

b. Business Consulting and Local Adaptation ([27:18]-[31:59])

• Nukaluk Joe Kleist: Emphasizes the importance of personal contact and understanding small-community mentality in Greenlandic business; the “Donald Trump school of deal making” unlikely to work.

  “We are people that are very proud of and really believe that we are connected to the surroundings we are living in. That respect for nature… and the community is what’s most important.” ([30:14])

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c. Tourism Operator’s View ([35:05]-[40:41])

• Casper Frank Muller (Raw Arctic): World attention, fueled by Trump, initially boosted inbound interest. Now, bookings pause amid concerns about US intent.

  “When a guy like Donald Trump, one of the most powerful people on earth, starts talking about a country that has barely been mentioned in, in the world history, it does something… It had a huge upside… But there’s so much… being talked about Greenland… so people… decide to kind of pause their bookings.” ([37:41]-[39:23])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On National Anxiety:

  “Every day we wake up and there is a new, some kind of new message to us in Greenland or Denmark… no one knows what’s going to happen.”
  — Nukaluk Joe Kleist ([10:00])

• On Global Leadership:

  “I don’t think they [NATO leaders] are sure about what’s going to happen… if today Trump says A, it’s going to be A, tomorrow it’ll probably be B or C or D…”
  — Diego Arizpoleta ([13:13])

• On Community Values:

  “When a reporter asked a 14-year-old girl, ‘Donald Trump says he’s going to make you rich. Don’t you want that?’ She said… ‘We are rich already… We are already great.’”
  — Nukaluk Joe Kleist ([30:14])

• On Tourism’s “Double-Edged Sword”:

  “Greenland became a new tourist destination. It’s trendy again. Who doesn’t want to go to Greenland before it’s taken over by the US—that’s at least the statement people are stating. But... there’s so much media momentum... so people… decide to kind of pause their bookings.”
  — Casper Frank Muller ([38:38])

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Important Timestamps

• [00:07] — Framing questions: Is Trump backing down? What’s the impact locally and globally?
• [02:09] — Nukaluk introduces Catuaq as the “beating heart” of Nuuk’s cultural life.
• [05:15] — Lex reports on a tense but slightly improved local mood after Trump’s speech and government reassurances.
• [08:19] — Carlotta Rebelo describes the tense atmosphere in Davos ahead of Trump’s speech.
• [10:00] — Nukaluk shares Greenlandic concerns about unpredictability and government advice on emergency preparation.
• [13:13] — Diego and Lex discuss Europe’s need for clarity in responses to Trump.
• [15:19] — Nukaluk describes evolving Danish and European approaches toward U.S. threats.
• [17:29] — Lex captures public sentiment (“vox populi”) in Nuuk; emergency siren anecdote.
• [22:21] — Hotelier Jurgen Baijkastrup describes unusual tourism and media activity.
• [31:59] — Panelists share what they hope for in coming days; all underscore the wish for stability.
• [35:05] — Casper Frank Muller chronicles the boom and hesitation in Greenlandic tourism.
• [39:48] — Muller confirms that locals do fear possible U.S. action, especially after events in Venezuela.

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Episode Tone and Takeaways

The tone throughout is watchful, wry, and gently skeptical. Locals express fundamental pride and community resilience but are simultaneously unsettled by volatile U.S. diplomacy. The panel highlights both the practical impacts (emergency readiness, business disruptions, tourism swings) and the broader existential uncertainty caused by Greenland’s sudden prominence on the geopolitical stage.

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For Listeners:
This episode offers invaluable firsthand accounts of how world events ripple through a tight-knit, proud community suddenly at the center of international drama. The mix of live public reactions, business insight, and on-the-ground reporting brings home both the seriousness and the absurdity of the “Greenland Question” in 2026.

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Transcript

[A]

You're listening to the Monocle Daily, first broadcast on 21 January 2026 on Monaco Radio.

[B]

US President Donald Trump says he won't take Greenland by force. But is anyone in Greenland or anywhere else reassured? Is it clear to anyone what Trump's immediate negotiations would look like or who they'd be with? And has all of this nonsense at least been good for Greenland's tourist trade? I'm Andrew Muller. The Monocle Daily starts now.

[C]

Foreign.

[B]

Hello and welcome to the Monocle Daily, coming to you from Catwalk, the Greenland Cultural center in Nuuk. I'm Andrew Muller. My guests are Nukaluk, Joe Kleist, Diego Arispoleta and Alexis Self will have all the latest from Nuuk. We'll hear from our team at Davos, where President Trump spoke earlier. And we'll meet one local tour operator and a Nuuk hot managing and sudden uptick in interest. Stay tuned. All that and more coming up right here on the Monocle Daily. Welcome everybody to another very special edition of the Monocle Daily. Live from Catwalk, the Greenland Cultural center in the heart of Nuuk. I am joined today by Anakuluk Joe Kleist, CEO of Pikayala, former director of Catwalk. This beautiful space from where we are broadcasting and Diego Arispoleta correspond Spain's national broadcaster. Also with us is Monocle's foreign editor, Alexa Self. Everybody. Hello.

[D]

Hello.

[B]

Hello, Anoka, look, first of all, I will get the two new panelists to introduce themselves. First of all, you used to actually run this place, so tell our listeners a bit about Catwalk. We're broadcasting in its fabulous airy atrium with a view of the snowy streets outside. We can hear hubbub from the cafe in the background. And I am today in a position to very much recommend the reindeer schnitz. But what kind of role does this place fill in Nuke's life?

[A]

Like you said, it is the heart of the city. A beautiful heart, I must say, a beating heart for culture. All kinds of cultural events are happening here. I was so lucky to be running this place for a bit more than five years. Quetoach has been here for. Well, next year it's 30 years. And during that time there has been all kinds of cultural events, exhibitions, concerts, theater and. Yeah, everything and anything that gathers people, really. And people love to gather in this house, gather around this house. And it's just in the middle of the main street that people walk and it has a big like, window all, all the way to the cafe and you can see. So whether you're sitting inside, you can still see everything happening outside and everyone who's walking, passing by. So you can see most of the people of Nuuk, you'll see at some point if you sit here long enough.

[B]

We will be talking a bit later in the show about the business environment here in Nuuk, which is the, the, the space that you' but introduce also.

[A]

Picquiala, your company Piciala is a consulting company. We are two owners of the company and we do consulting for both Greenlandic organizations, companies, the municipality and the government, but also organizations and companies who want to do work in Greenland or who are doing work in Greenland and want counselling in. Yeah, like now the world situation, Greenland, what's good to do, what not to do. So. And we work a lot with strategy and communication.

[B]

Okay, well, we will be coming back to that. Diego to bring you in. How have you been telling Greenland's story to Spain?

[E]

Well, actually, this is not my first time here. We came here last year because Donald Trump was becoming the President of the United States. Right. So this is my second time. I think this is kind of new and I've seen some differences from when we were here last year and today. I think last year you will correct me if I'm wrong. People didn't think he was serious and they kind of joked about what he meant about Greenland. Now, I think the situation is completely different. I think Greenlanders nowadays are almost scared of what may happen. And I think that, as we say in Spanish, they are starting to see the wolf ears.

[B]

Lex, on the subject of that metaphor, you were earlier today attending a press conference at which taking this seriously was very much the agenda.

[D]

Yeah, a press conference at the government building, which is just across from where we're doing this podcast now. It's a small, rust colored building and there was a press conference scheduled for 2pm after yesterday's press conference at which the Prime Minister warned Greenlanders that there was the potential for an invasion. It was unlikely, but it might happen. So to be prepared for that today it was scheduled to build upon that. And it was two government ministers talking about emergency supplies. And during the press conference, they explained that the government can assure the people that they have enough medical supplies, enough food and enough water to last for five days. But given that Donald Trump's speech a couple of hours earlier kind of, you know, dispelled the threat of invasion or at least tempered it for the meanwhile, I think the mood was a bit lighter than it had been yesterday. That's the impression I've got around town, anyway.

[B]

Well, we will have more from our panel shortly. But first, for more than a year now, everyone here in Greenland has been obliged to pay close attention to the outbursts of US President Donald Trump regarding his designs on their island. President Trump has been speaking about it again today at the World Economic Forum in Davos. As Lex was just saying, here is some of what President Trump had to say. We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that. Well, I'm joined now from Davos by Monocle's senior foreign correspondent, Carlota Rebelo. Carlotta, before President Trump started speaking, what was the atmosphere like?

[F]

Hi, Andrew. It's very safe to say that today there's been a palpable tension almost since, you know, since the day began. There's also been so many more people in town today precisely because of the appearance of Mr. Trump. As we've been discussing throughout the week, it's been impossible to avoid talking about him even before he touched down in Davos, but the mood was quite tense. You know, there were queues going into the Congress center longer than any of the days before, additional checkpoints for people coming in both on foot and by car. And the traffic jam up the mountain was almost impossible to deal with. And just as I'm speaking to you now, the traffic jam out of Davos is almost at a standstill, too. So you can kind of tell that a lot has been happening above me right now. The noise you can hear is in the middle of everything that's going on. But there are at least two helicopters above me. So clearly this has been a day of a lot of movement. And yes, ahead of his much anticipated speech that when the day began with the news of Air Force One being forced back to where it took off, we weren't sure if it was going to be postponed or delayed. But to everyone's surprise, he arrived pretty much on time.

[B]

Well, Carlotta, we heard what I think is the key line from the speech there, which appears to be President Trump ruling out seizing Greenland by force, although, as we have come to know, he is a man of considerable whim who is capable of changing his mind again within a matter of hours. But if that was the atmosphere before he spoke, what was it like?

[F]

Well, what can you expect when a speech begins where it's great to see so many friends and a few enemies? I think that set the tone for what was coming after. There was a weirdly, a really weird sense of relief because the great thing about Trump that we all know is the unpredictability. Even when I spoke to some journalists who have been speaking with people close to Trump administration, their own sources could not point to what the president was going to say. So just having that out of the way was a big relief. Now, it was a speech, as you know, that was basically telling off everybody for not being grateful enough. That is the key message that came out of that. Denmark is not grateful enough, Venezuela is not grateful enough. You know, you name a nation and probably he'll have some grievance. And I know that he. You must be quite pleased that the annual rant about windmills came back up again. I know that's one of your favorites, Andrew.

[B]

It's always nice to hear him doing the hits. Carlotta Rebelo in Davos, thank you for joining us. At which let's bring in our panel back here in Nuuk. That's Anukaluk, Joe Kleist, Diego Arizpoleta and Alexa Self Anakhaluk. Will Greenlanders, do you think, be reassured by President Trump appearing to rule out invading Greenland?

[A]

At least it's like a bit different than what he has said before. So I think, I'm sure that that reassures a little. But not like it's not like now, oh, we are over this and then we know what's gonna happen. No one know what's gonna happen. And I think that is the reality for us every day. Every day we wake up and there is a new, some kind of new message to us in Greenland or Denmark and by that way also for us. So it's not like I know people are, a lot of people are anxious, a lot of people are also afraid and they just don't know what to expect. And that's probably also why the government, the premier Frederick Nilsson said yesterday that we don't think it's going to happen in innovation. We really don't think. But we can't rule it out. We can. We just don't know what's going on because things are changing all the time. So that's why their message to the whole population was you need to help us by beginning to prepare a lit a little bit and just be prepared. And that was also today it was actually like directly addressed to the population, of course, saying that the work is being done and they can tell us everything. Like they're saying there are a lot of information that cannot come out, but that now they're actually telling the population very concrete what to do. What do you need to be prepared for. But as they were saying, well, sometimes we live in the Arctic, we, we have some years ago experienced here in Nuuk that there was no electricity for, for three days, on and off, no mobile connection, no Internet, no nothing. So there can be other situation where it's helpful to be prepared like they were saying. So any kind of crisis. But, but, but that makes people nervous also because although they are saying this will probably not happen at all, but you know, being told to prepare for something that says that it might happen in some way and that makes people both, you know, they're happy that they know the government is being prepared, but they're also very nervous that they actually have to think of these worst case scenarios.

[B]

Diego Davos heard yesterday from Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, who made a fairly stark speech saying that the old order is over and we all need to start accepting that and thinking along those lines. The same fellow Western leaders to whom he was speaking will be desperate to hear reassurance from Trump today as well. Perhaps not as desperate as the people here in Greenland are, but nobody likes change of this scale. Do you think NATO leaders would be wise to take what Donald Trump said at face value or should they be continuing to take notes on Mark Carney's speech?

[E]

Well, actually, I don't think they are sure about what's going to happen because, I mean, you said at the beginning the whole thing is a nonsense. And so I think that they just don't know. They cannot be sure that if today Trump says A, it's going to be A, tomorrow it'll probably be B or C or D, and it'll always have been D according to him because he changes his mind every time and he doesn't recognize that he wouldn't admit it. So, I mean, I think they've got to, they've got to have a strong opinion before him and just make things clear and don't move from wherever they want to stay.

[D]

Actually, Diego, I'd be interested to hear your views on Pedro Sanchez's approach to Trump, which has been pretty unequivocal since he returned to office. What's the mood in Spain? Do people follow what Sanchez says? Do the right wing parties lean towards Trump in any way?

[E]

Well, actually, I think that Pedro Sanchez right now is very unpopular in Spain and it doesn't matter whatever he says regarding any politics at all. I don't think people in Spain really care about what he says. The political situation in Spain is kind of quirky. To summarize it in just a word. And even though I think his position is pretty clear and I would say say that it's unequivocal and I totally support it, whatever he says now, it's regarded as a distraction for what's happening in Spain. And so I don't think, I mean, I don't think anyone cares, actually. I think his opinion is more important outside of Spain that than inside Spain.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

But I also saw, at least yesterday, I also follow a bit like the Danish media and what is going on in Europe and the eu. And one of the things I saw at least yesterday there was a lot of talk about in the media in Europe and in Denmark was that, well, you can just. And also different other important people, world leaders were like pushing a bit and saying, well, you can't just keep on accepting threats and accepting that those things are being said and accept anything that comes. You also have to have some kind of a limit at some point and say, well, this is the limit. If you do this, we will do that. And so it was interesting, I think, to see because for a year now, the focus has been that the US Is such an important ally and we need to keep that door open. We need to talk to the ally and say, you are our ally. Now there is some talk, of course, because some of the European countries are also maybe being punished soon, economically in some, some way from the US but where they're saying, well, we won't, we will not, or the Danish prime minister said, we will not be the first ones to take some kind of an action that has a consequence for our relationship. But if the US really does that, that he will, he will take actions that are not good for the cooperation and the allyship we have, then we have to be ready with an answer. So I think the European countries are getting ready to like, okay, if he pushes this or that button, this will be our answer.

[B]

Well, we'll come back to our panel shortly. But first, we will now go back to Lex. Lex, you have once again been pounding the snow in search of the vox populi or whatever the Greenlandic flag for vox populi even is introduce today's roundup.

[D]

I spent the day out and about pounding the streets of Nuuk again. As I said earlier, I think the mood after the prime minister's speech yesterday was pretty downcast and anxious. Then Trump gave his own rambling riposte yesterday evening, during which he responded to a question about Greenland with the reply, you'll find out, which I don't think calmed anything down at midday today. Nuuk tested its emergency siren system. I don't know if that's a.

[A]

Every Wednesday, we do that every Wednesday at 12.

[D]

Okay. Yeah, Thomas, you just have to hope.

[B]

There isn't an actual emergency on Wednesday at 12.

[A]

I think when they have to test it, and they do that in a lot of places, other places in the world also. I don't know, maybe you're not used to that. We're used to that in Nuuk, at least. So every Wednesday at 12, they test that it still works, because then when you need to use it, it's not like out of function. But I think when really something is happening, it's a longer tone and, you know, it should sound different.

[D]

Well, Thomas, the photographer and I didn't realize that, and nor did we realize that it was midday on the dot, so our hearts did flutter slightly.

[A]

I can understand.

[D]

Then Trump gave his Davos speech, which calmed things down and begged the question, why hadn't he done that earlier? And then during the press conference, as I said earlier, there was a lighter mood than yesterday because of Trump's speech. And then I was walking around asking people if they'd watched Trump's speech. I saw a few people watching it on their phones. So, yeah, we can listen to that. I don't know if that's because Trump is making his speech or perhaps has just landed at Davos. Has the Danish, EU and NATO reaction been perceived generally as a good one by Greenlanders?

[C]

I mean, you.

[A]

You almost read and hear all of these things in the news, so. And what I hear is around from this country is that people mostly are happy to have airlines.

[D]

I see you're watching Donald Trump's speech at Davos. Have you had time to formulate an opinion about it or reaction to it?

[F]

I can understand that my fellow Greenlanders are kind of panicking, but I don't think I'm one of them. So I. I sleep well at night because I know that he can't. He can't just take over because there are protocols and laws and everything to like, you can't just take. You can't just take another country. So I have a satire radio program, a Danish podcast, so I have to follow the news to. To be relevant for my podcasts. Otherwise I don't give a shit, kinda.

[A]

If you can say that.

[D]

Did you listen to Donald Trump's speech today at Davos? Have you watched it?

[B]

I haven't watched it yet.

[D]

What are your general views on his rhetoric over the past few days?

[G]

I hate it. I hate him.

[B]

I hope he doesn't buy us.

[D]

We're going to a press conference at the government building with the Greenlandic Minister for Fisheries, Hunting, Agriculture and Self sufficiency and the Minister for Social Affairs, Labour Market, housing, infrastructure and remote areas to talk about preparedness in case of an emergency or an invasion. Did you listen to Donald Trump's speech at Davos?

[B]

Trump. We'll put him down as an undecided. Etc. Lex, thank you for that. We will have more from you later in the show. But now, when any place becomes an epicentre of global news, there is always a hotel. A hotel that is, that finds itself hosting the global press pack, all furiously attempting to scoop and sabotage each other while asking bewildered reception staff if they can put their bar tab on a laundry receipt. And I'm joined now by the lucky proprietor this time. Thanks for joining us. Introduce yourself and your hotel.

[G]

Yeah, thank you. My name is Jurgen Baijkastrup. I'm the CEO of hotelanzegre in the city center of Nuuk.

[B]

I want you to say as well the name of Nuuk's main street, because it's a lovely sound when it's said, right?

[G]

Akhosyneswak.

[B]

That's the one meaning the mainstream. How is everybody behaving so far?

[G]

Well, it's a strange life we have these days and I think that if you talk about the guest at the hotel, they are primarily journalists and reporters like you. But in general the situation that the hotel is the same way it used to be during as a normal hotel business. The difference these days is that we have another kind of attention to the hotel and to the country itself. And by that we have, as I said, a lot of other guests, as we usually have during January time, where normally in January hotel business is low. But this January, as we also have last January due to the Trump situation, we have a lot of guests this January, reporters, military, police from all over the world almost visiting us these days. So it's another way of life we have these days.

[B]

But have you noticed an uptick in interest from people who aren't journalists? Are you getting more honest to goodness tourists than you were this time a couple of years ago?

[G]

Well, actually we got some cancellation for the summertime during due to the situation we are in now. But in the short term perspective, businesses are increasing and what will happen during the spring and the summer due to the situation? It's difficult for me to predict these days, but we have another kind of attention we can feel.

[B]

I'll bring you in at this point as well, Diego, because This hotel was where we found you this morning. Where do you think this one ranks when you measure it against other the hotels that you've stayed in? Because there is always the hotel.

[E]

Well, actually I would say this Hansigd.

[G]

Hans Egg.

[B]

Yeah.

[E]

Okay, so that's the way you pronounce it, right. I would say it is the perfect hotel here. We didn't talk before, but I say it because that location is just perfect. I mean for us who need to work here in Nuuk it just like a minute walk from everywhere we want to go like the parliament, this cultural culture house here or almost anywhere in, in Nuuk.

[B]

I, I do have to ask as well because we first arrived when it was dark and we, and we just saw these wooden scaffolds out the front and, and, and the big machinery as well. Some sort of refurbishment is going on and I can't figure out what it is.

[G]

Yeah, I can't figure it out myself now actually we just re getting a new facade and we will change all the windows and all the rooms. So we are making a noise reduction renovation and to do a new climate shell as well to reduce our use of CO2 in the end.

[B]

I mean how challenging is it to maintain a building of that size in an environment like this?

[G]

Extremely, extremely. Due to ourselves, of course, and especially due to our guests because the renovation has last now for a year actually and you cannot avoid having extra noise, extra music from the outside, workers and so on. And it has given us some difficulties during. Especially during summertime when we have a lot of tourists this year and tourists in general sleep a little bit longer than reporters like you do. So I had my discussions during, especially during summertime when they want to sleep until 8, 9 o' clock and the workers will start at 6, 7 o' clock in the morning working on the facade. So it has given us some difficulties this summer.

[B]

But the phrase you were looking for there was of course hard working reporters.

[G]

Absolutely. And leave bed.

[B]

I'm aware our bosses may be listening. Jurgen Bay Kastrup, manager of the hotel Hans Agheda. We got it right. Near enough. Okay, thank you very much.

[G]

You're mostly welcome.

[B]

You are listening to the Daily on Monocle Radio live from Nuuk. Anaka, look, I will bring you back in now because I did want to talk a bit about Nuuk as a business environment and, and sort of improving that and introducing people to that is what you do now at. At Pikiala. What's actually good about it? Does it have the benefits of a relatively small community where everyone does kind of know each other. So if you need to get hold of somebody, that's not too hard, right?

[A]

Yeah. If you know people. And that's why it's also. I think and you probably also experienced it having some key persons who you can just ask if I want to someone who knows something about this, who should I talk to? We probably like the people who live here Nuuk. We often know the answer because we know the people here in nuuk we are 20,000 people, which is a lot when in. In a Greenlandic perspective compared to. To other cities and settlements in Greenland. But. But yeah, for the rest of the world, 20,000 as the capital is not much. Which means that we are well connected, we know each other. And also when it comes to the businesses, sometimes when we need to do something fast, we can do it fast depending on what the need is and the situation is.

[B]

So if there have been businesses and you must be hearing from them who for one reason or another have had their curiosity about Greenland peaked and fancy setting up shop in Nuuk, what kind of things do they need to know before they do that? I'm not. Obviously if people want professional advice from you, they can come and, and you can invoice them accordingly. But what, what's something that you need to know here that you might not need to know somewhere else?

[A]

I think that no matter what and also just concerning working in Greenland, that if you are a reporter or you are someone doing. Wanting to do business or something, you need to like know that the world view kind of or the, the sense of how people are, are used to act. It's not like we, we like quietness. Like we, we. We don't need to yell and say a lot of words. That is like just. I think you, you see that when you come here and you feel it. But we, we. A lot of people want to like see face to face when they work with people. We are a connected society. We're used to being in contact with each other and we also need that. So understanding also the mentality and that some people are very. If you need to get a hold of people, the human contact is very, very important because sometimes you just don't get an answer. You don't know what it is having that all different culture. We live in the Arctic also, so you can't drive from city to city. You know, it's very. And our country is very, very big. So when you do business you need to like know the geography, you need to know the mentality and you need to Know that, yeah, the society is.

[B]

Put together, the Donald Trump school of deal making probably not going to work too well here.

[A]

Yeah, like I think there was an interview with some young people. There was interview with some young people living here in Nuuk. And then a reporter asked him, well, Donald Trump says that he's going to make you rich. Don't you want that? And this 14 year old girl just said like automatically we are rich already. And well, he wants to make you greater. We are already great. She said with a big smile. And you know that feeling of richness. Richness is not just in money. Richness is in life. Richness is in our environment. We are people that are very proud of and really believe that we are connected to the surroundings we are living in. And that's why respect for the nature and don't just use resources just because you can. It has to have a purpose. And it's a very collective. What do you call it in English, like a society where it's not the individual that is most important, it's the community that is the most important. And that, that can be a big strength. But it of course it can also, when you do businesses, it can also be kind of like a. Well, when you do a business, you're really thinking about your own business. But so that can be like an obstacle. But understanding that mentality of the society is important. I think when you're working and you want to do work in Greenland, that community is very important and the nature is important for us.

[B]

Well, just before I let the whole panel go, I will ask each of our foreign reporters here in turn. You first, Diego, what are you hoping for for the rest of your time here?

[E]

Well, actually I would like to have the situation resolved. I think that Greenlanders would like that much better than I do. But this is going to give us some headaches in the coming days for sure. I think that Donald Trump is not going to let this prey go. They are about to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of the USA in July. I think this is just a matter of vanity. He wants to be part of the history of the USA no matter what. And I think he's going to be pushing and pushing all the way he can. And I think that European leaders and NATO leaders need to let him know where to stop and that he cannot go any further. He can do almost anything he wants here in Greenland. He just have to ask for it. It just doesn't make any sense that he's claiming that it's a matter of national security because it's not. Everyone knows that. From my point of view this is a very personal point of view. It's just a matter of vanity. That's about it, full stop. And I think they need to stop.

[A]

Him and I think just a comment to that as she was saying that if he wants to talk to Greenland and wants to to do something, the dialogue is the way and I don't know in the media right now you see a lot of frustrated Greenlanders maybe and they're angry and frustrated but we are also a very warm population and when you go to Greenland I think you sense that, that we are welcoming and we're used to not having all war and conflicts is not like in our DNA.

[B]

And Lex, finally, what are you looking forward to with our remains time here?

[D]

I can completely concur with what the other two have just said about the situation from a personal perspective. I'm looking forward, I think we're gonna get out on a boat tomorrow into the fjord. Nuuk is a beautiful town but you can see surrounding it mountains and, and you go down to the old Nuuk to the harbour and you can see some of the fjord just tailing off into the distance. So I'm looking forward to going out there and seeing it a bit closer up.

[B]

Lex self nook a look. Joe Kleist and Diego Arispaleta, thank you all for joining us. Finally on today's show, whether or not it was what Donald Trump wanted or intended, he has directed an extraordinary amount of sympathy and curiosity towards Greenland. There will be many people who, having called up a few images of this beautiful country, have looked into visiting one day. And so Monocle Radio can confidently assert they should. One local company hoping to take advantage is Raw Arctic, a nuke based tour operator aiming to both showcase and protect Greenland's unique landscapes and wildlife. Well, earlier I spoke to Casper Frank Muller, CEO and co founder of Raw Arctic and I began by asking him how the business began.

[C]

Approximate, I would say three and a half years ago, Isaac, one of the co founders sitting in there, we got the idea to establish this company called Roar. And I think for us it was about merging our hobby with our profession. Me, myself, I have a master degree in innovation and entrepreneurship and teaches business at the university. And Isaac is an educated Arctic adventure guide. So he knows his way around these in this nature. So we kind of gathered together and thought, okay, let's do something different. Let's spend our lives on something that we really love. And that's where we brought Rasmus in, he's the other co founder, he's a captain on some of our boats and he has a lot of experience with business as well. So we were kind of set up for success, let me say it that way. So we ended up launching the company around one and a half year ago, almost two years ago now. And it was again with the idea of working with boat operations, working with fly fishing because that's, that's one of my true passions. I really love fly fishing. It's a bit of a family thing that I do with my siblings. So it started out quite small and then it scaled into being not not only operating Hinnuuk, but doing travel packages and tours all over Greenland.

[B]

So what's different about what Raw Arctic is doing? Where did you see a gap in the market that other tour operators and other tourism businesses in Greenland weren't operating?

[C]

I think there is quite a big competition in the market when it comes to tourism because I think of course you have the fisheries is like a really a pillar of the economy. Then you have of course rare earth mills, minerals in general and then you have tourism. And this is kind of the newest establishment of the Greenlandic economy. And that's where we saw an opportunity. But again, there is a really tough competition in the market. But I usually say it's really difficult to buy something that you can't see. So that's exactly what we tried to develop and enhance even further. And that was to sell Greenland. And how do you sell it is by being present. It's by taking these interviews, getting us publicly known. It's about being effective on social media. It's about having the proper agents and just being an outspoken person. Travel around and using your contacts. And I think that was kind of our go to market strategy to really just get it out there. And we ran a campaign in National Geographic last year that said not for sale, open for exploring. So we kind of use this entire media momentum to our advantage.

[B]

Well, I mean that kind of preempts a question I wanted to ask which was have you noticed an upgrade uptick in attention over the last year or so, not just from journalists such as ourselves, but from people who all of a sudden are interested in coming to Greenland, who may never have thought about going to Greenland before.

[C]

Again, when, when a guy like Donald Trump, one of the most powerful people on earth, start talking about a country that has barely been mentioned in, in the world history, it does something. Of course last year when the first people really started to arrive, not people, but mainly journalists, Greenland was kind of put on the world map. And that was a huge opportunity for me, especially after raw Arctic, because we went out and do it, did exactly what we do right now, talking to journalists. So we really got raw Arctic out there. And it was a huge upside because then people wrote to us, hey, I read about you in an article, I saw you in the television. And they're like, I want to come visit your country. And that was just brilliant. It had a huge upside and it just made us scale way faster because we were the first contact point. We're not that reliant on external agents.

[B]

But did you notice those inquiries actually leading to an uptick in bookings? Did those people who made those inquiries, and I'm not talking about journalists, I'm talking about actual honest to goodness tourists, did they all actually turn up?

[C]

Yes, they did. Again, Greenland became a new tourist destination. It's trendy again. Who doesn't want to go to Greenland before it's taken over by the US that's at least the statement that people are stating. So it's just interests. So again, now there are a lot of people. But my concerns are though, and that's also one of the things that we see right now is that like, and we're kind of reaching. There's a, like, it's a bit of a double edged sword because there's so much media momentum, there is so much being talked about Greenland and people want to go to Greenland. But because of what we saw in Venezuela, it just kind of puts a bit more power behind the words of Trump. So the concerns right now are a little bit too much. So people, they decide to kind of pause their bookings.

[B]

People are waiting to see what happens.

[G]

Yes.

[C]

So people saying, yeah, we have like 20 people on, on the waiting list and they're like, yeah, we want to book, but it's a bit too, it's not safe enough right now. So they kind of just want to wait a bit out, wait a few weeks to, to hope things are going to settle.

[B]

Your sense though, that that prospect of the United States actually acting does hang over people on Greenland? Is it something that green are generally actually quite worried about?

[C]

Yes, of course. Again, in the aftermath of what happened in Venezuela, it seems way more likely that it's going to happen. And of course, when we sit on like, let's say critical rare earth mills, we sit on possible shipping routes opening up with the rapid escalation of climate change. Again, we are a geopolitical position that means a lot and we definitely feel that so we understand why Trump wants Greenland, but again, is it going to happen? That's where I have my doubts. Again. Wars in between, NATO allies, the disturbance of the world autumn. I have my doubts that. That it will happen. But our guests are still a bit too hesitant to book because, oh, they're not sure yet and neither are we. How could we know? Of course, we're all concerned. We're worried about the future because you're always concerned about something you can't predict.

[B]

That was Caspar Frank Muller, CEO and co founder of the tour company Raw Arctic. And that's all for this special edition of the Monocle Daily from Catuac, the Greenland Cultural center in Nuuk. A big thanks to our panelists today, Al Nukaluk, Joe Kleist, Diego Arispoleta and Alexa Self. Today's show was produced by Lily Austin and researched by Anneliese Maynard. Our studio manager in London was Steph Changu. I'm Andrew Muller here in Nuke. The Monocle Daily is back in Nuuk at the same time tomorrow.

[C]

Thanks for listening.