Washington Post: How an election in Greenland could affect China — and the rare-earth minerals in your cellphone.
Sitting on vast, untapped reserves of uranium and rare-earth minerals, Greenland holds the keys to massive wealth.
But many Greenlanders have grave doubts about whether they should allow the world to exploit those resources, given the risk that mining could pose to the Arctic territory’s fragile environment.
The remote, snow-covered island sent a clear message to global mining interests this week when voters handed a rare victory to Inuit Ataqatigiit, a democratic socialist party with a 34-year-old leader and an environmental bent. The party, whose name translates to “Community of the People,” had campaigned on halting what was on track to become a massive mining operation in southern Greenland, led by an Australian company and backed by Chinese investment.