Chronic. Only a few days after the start of the Russian offensive, Ukraine received unexpected support from the other side of the world. Tuesday 1er march, a Ukrainian flag flanked by the slogan “Slavia Ukraine” (“Glory to Ukraine”) arose on the main artery of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland with a population of around 17,000, posed there by hunters who, in the freezing cold, sold pieces of seal meat or reindeer to make ends meet. On the piece of cardboard painted in blue and yellow, one could read this other inscription, written this time in Greenlandic: « Qanoq Iliussaanga ? » (” what can we do ? “). That a seal hunter in Greenland is mobilizing in favor of Ukraine says a lot about the planetary resonance of the Russian invasion, and the fear it aroused.
This delivers another lesson: Greenland is, paradoxically, the most remote and isolated country on the planet… and one of the most exposed to this war. First on the economic level: the Russian invasion propelled the prices of raw materials to record levels. The S&P GSCI index, a barometer of commodity prices, jumped 16% last week, its biggest rise in fifty years, and exceeded a level not reached since 2008.
This increase could trigger an unprecedented mining rush in Greenland, the largest island in the world with its 2 million square kilometers which are full of resources, from lead to iron, titanium or gold. These have been untapped until now due to the high cost of extraction and the logistical challenges it poses. The underground galleries must be heated to prevent high-pressure water jets from turning into ice, the engines of excavators and trucks must also be heated at night so that they can restart the next day. The country’s isolation also complicates operations: in the event of a breakdown, the smallest spare part must be transported over thousands of kilometres, which can take weeks.
Rare earth
For the moment, exploration companies are spending several hundred million euros to map the subsoil of Greenland. They send tents and equipment by helicopter to make drill cores. The data is then resold to companies tempted to embark on the mining adventure. Global warming, combined with technological progress and the rise in demand for rare earths, was already whetting appetites. The rise in prices could encourage manufacturers to open many mines in Greenland. The government is in favor of it, because it sees it as a way of strengthening its economic independence vis-à-vis Denmark, which finances, to the tune of around 500 million euros, half of its annual budget. The only exception: the exploitation of uranium has been prohibited there since November 2021 for fear of the consequences on the environment, in particular fisheries. Fishing represents 90% of the country’s exports.
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