Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand in Nuuk, Greenland, February 6, 2026. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov
Since U.S. President Donald Trump's return to the White House, the United States' relations with Canada have deteriorated considerably. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is making it abundantly clear that he has no desire for Canada to become "the 51st state," and he is highly critical of Trump's push for a U.S. takeover of Greenland.
Carney, during a speech at the 2026 World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland in January, lamented that a "rupture" has occurred in relations between the U.S. and its longtime North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies. And Trump was so offended by Carney's comments that he withdrew his invitation for Canada to join his new Board of Peace.
Now, Canada's expression of solidarity with Greenland is escalating with the Friday, February 6 opening of a new Canadian consulate in Nuuk, the Danish territory's capital city.
The opening, according to The Independent's Brendan Rascius, signals "stronger diplomatic ties" between Canada and Greenland "as President Donald Trump pursues his bid to acquire the Arctic island."
Rascius notes that although the new Canadian Consulate in Nuuk "had been in the works for over a year," the opening "comes during a period of heightened tension between the Trump Administration and Greenland, Denmark and other NATO allies."
Nuuk Mayor Avaaraq Olsen is quoted as saying, "It's really important for us to know that we are not alone in this, that we actually have people from other countries who care about us. People are scared and they are more and more concerned. Because of Trump's statements, they get very worse and worse."
The opening is generating a lot of discussion on X, formerly Twitter.
CBC reporter Olivia Stefanovich tweeted, "A delegation of 65 Inuit are travelling to Greenland with Makivvik for the official opening of the Canadian consulate in the capital Nuuk. They say they're going to stand in solidarity with Kalaallit, Greenlandic Inuit, amidst threats from U.S. President Donald Trump."
Stefanovich also posted, "Every passenger on board Air Inuit has flags from Canada and Greenland to celebrate the official opening of the Canadian consulate in Nuuk on Friday."
Bloomberg News noted, "Canada and France will open consulates in Greenland on Friday, underscoring NATO allies' heightened interest in the region after Donald Trump asserted his desire to see the US to take control of the island."
Al Jazeera English described the consulate as a "strong show of support for NATO ally Denmark…. in the wake of US efforts to secure control of the Arctic island."
Toronto-based Dr. Raghu Venugopal, a board member for Médecins Sans Frontières Canada (Doctors Without Borders Canada), tweeted, "Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, Governor General Mary Simon and a delegation of Canadian Inuit today open the new Canadian Consulate in Nuuk, Greenland. A proud day for Canada — standing up to American aggression and bottomless greed."