The Gwich’in Council International accused the United States on Tuesday of “undermining cooperation on Arctic challenges.”
The council, known as the GCI, represents 9,000 Gwich’in in the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Alaska.
In a news release, the GCI told the US to stop threatening to annex Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland) and Canada.
“We recognize the sovereign and self-governing rights of the people of Kalaallit Nunaat, the Inuit, and the people of the Kingdom of Denmark, to decide for themselves what is in their own peoples’ best interests,” the GCI stated.
“The sovereignty of Canada, which relies on Canada’s special relationship with the Gwich’in, respect for our sovereignty, and the recognition of our rights as Indigenous Peoples, must be respected to have a peaceful and cooperative Arctic.”
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Donald Trump’s “51st state” refrains have been a near-weekly occurrence since his return to the White House, but his threats to acquire Greenland – by military force if necessary, he has said – have generally been delivered in a more meaningful tone.
“The Arctic is changing rapidly, four times faster climatically than the rest of the world. As we work together to jointly address these drastic changes, and challenges, we need to be sure that the shared principles of Arctic governance are not lost or eroded,” the GCI stated.
“These shared principles include mutual recognition and respect for the rights of Indigenous Peoples in the Arctic and everywhere, the sovereignty of states to peacefully continue to co-exist, and the principle that cooperation and consensus-based actions in the north form our collective path forward.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday again told Trump during an Oval Office photo op that Canada would “never” become a US state.
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Other northern groups have also called for more US-Canada cooperation rather than the Trump administration’s focus on tariffs, annexation and a growing trade war.
In March, politicians in Alaska discussed the ties between their state and Canada.
The Northwest Territories has also joined other Canadian jurisdictions and some US states in passing a resolution designed to express solidarity through a group named the Pacific Northwest Economic Region Foundation.
