NUUK - Greenlanders were sceptical on Jan 21 following US President Donald Trump’s announcement that he had settled the question of the Arctic island’s future.

Following weeks of increasingly bellicose rhetoric surrounding his desire to seize the autonomous Danish territory, Mr Trump said at Davos that he had

reached a framework of a deal that satisfies him

Several Greenlanders interviewed by AFP in the capital Nuuk voiced doubt when they heard the news – or refused to believe it.

“Quite simply a lie. He’s lying,” said 47-year-old technician Mickel Nielsen.

“I don’t believe a word he says, and I don’t think I’m the only one,” he added.

Mr Trump said he had reached an agreement during talks with NATO chief Mark Rutte, but offered few details and was conspicuously silent on whether the deal would mean US control over the Arctic island, which he has repeatedly demanded.

The head of the transatlantic military alliance for his part said the conversation had been “very productive”, according to NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart.

Allies would discuss the framework which addresses Mr Trump’s claims that the island is not protected from Russia or China, she said.

“Negotiations between Denmark, Greenland, and the United States will go forward aimed at ensuring that Russia and China never gain a foothold – economically or militarily – in Greenland,” she said.

But the island’s inhabitants remained unconvinced.

“Trump? I don’t believe him,” said care worker Anak, 64. “Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders.”