A mysterious American is being investigated in Greenland after allegedly offering money to locals to support joining the US
Police in Greenland are investigating the case of an American citizen who allegedly tried to convince locals to support the island's accession to the United States by offering them large sums of money in exchange for signing a petition.
Clifford Stanley tempted the Greenlanders with money to join the USA PHOTO: X
The incident took place in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, and caused strong reactions in an already tense political context, after the repeated statements of US President Donald Trump regarding the possibility of annexing the Arctic territory.
Danny Brandt, a taxi driver in Nuuk, says he picked up the man outside a downtown hotel on Wednesday, May 6. The passenger, described as an elderly American, dressed casually and carrying several documents, identified himself as “Cliff from Las Vegas.”
According to Brandt, the conversation quickly took an unexpected turn.
“He asked me if I wanted to win $200,000”the driver said. Instead, he would only have to sign a petition for Greenland to become part of the United States.
Brandt says he immediately declined the offer and, after dropping the man off at another hotel, contacted police. Authorities confirmed to The New York Times that investigations have begun.
While the idea may seem improbable, the case has drawn attention in Greenland amid growing suspicions of American influence on the island. Most Greenlanders have repeatedly declared against the idea of becoming part of the US.
Police did not provide further details about the investigation, but officials said the situation may be related to the “current political context.”
The reaction of the prime minister of Greenland
The Prime Minister of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, reacted publicly after the information emerged.
“Our future is not negotiated in a taxi“, he wrote on Facebook. “That's not how you treat a people and that's not how you talk about a country.”
The statements come at a time when Greenland remains sensitive to any initiative from the Americans. Tensions rose after Donald Trump said last year that the United States would get Greenland “one way or another”.
Brandt says he became suspicious the moment he noticed the sheet the American was holding.
“There were big letters about whether Greenland wants to be part of the US”he said.
The 34-year-old driver works both as a taxi driver and on a fishing trawler. He states that the idea of joining the United States does not inspire confidence at all.
“I've heard a lot about poverty in America, and I'm totally against that idea,” he said.
Many close associates of the US president have traveled to the island
Local media reported that the same man would have approached other people with similar proposals. Photos shared on social media show him chatting with locals and carrying a clipboard with documents. In one of the images he appears with two policemen.
Greenland daily Sermitsiaq later identified the man as 86-year-old Clifford Stanley. He told the publication that he was acting on his own and did not represent the Trump administration.
He said he was trying to “assess support for the United States taking over Greenland.”
“I'm trying to give the people of Greenland an opportunity. The decision is theirs”Stanley stated.
It is not clear how such a petition could fit into the actual political process. Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark and has the legal right to become independent before it can join another state.
A possible trial would require the approval of the Greenlandic government, the Danish parliament and the holding of a referendum.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has repeatedly expressed interest in Greenland, and several close associates of the US president have traveled to the island in recent years for meetings and local contacts.
Last year, Danish authorities described the activities of some American citizens associated with Trump as “discreet influence operations,” even though they made no secret of their intentions.
It also remains unclear where the $200,000 promised to the Greenlanders would come from. Stanley told local media that the money would not come from personal sources, but possibly from American funds or even with the support of allies in the Middle East.
Denmark currently gives Greenland over half a billion dollars in annual subsidies.
US officials close to Trump have previously suggested that direct payments to Greenland's population could be a way to increase support for US rapprochement. The representatives of Greenland and Denmark qualified, however, such ideas as offensive.
