Dutch Independence Award for the people of Greenland

This marks the fifth time the Dutch Independence Award has been presented. The first award was presented to President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine on July 26, 2022, a few months after Russia’s invasion of his country.

The jury praises the response of the Greenlandic people to territorial claims by the United States as a combination of principled steadfastness, democratic legitimacy, and geopolitical realism. Attempts to treat Greenland as the object of a geopolitical transaction were clearly and unanimously rejected. At the same time, Greenland’s tone remained moderate, without any escalation or hardening of rhetoric.

Sovereign Calm
This sovereign calm is particularly evident in the way Greenland—naturally in coordination with Denmark and in consultation with NATO partners—has handled renewed American interest in the island. Instead of resorting to outright rejection or confrontation, Greenland chose a course in which the American role in Greenlandic security was recalibrated and embedded within NATO cooperation.

The jury considers this approach an example of how a small nation can safeguard its autonomy and democratic legitimacy while navigating the realities of great-power politics.

Aaja Chemnitz
The Dutch Independence Foundation has invited Aaja Chemnitz to accept the Dutch Independence Award on July 3.

Until the most recent elections, Aaja Chemnitz (1977) was a member of the Danish Folketing (Parliament) for the Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA). Since first being elected in 2015, she represented one of Greenland’s two parliamentary seats. She previously served as a member of the Inatsisartut (Greenlandic Parliament).

Chemnitz has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to ease tensions between the United States, Denmark, and Greenland following President Donald Trump’s threats to take over the Arctic island.

July 3
The Dutch Independence Award will be presented on July 3, the eve of the Fourth of July and the 250th anniversary of the world’s most famous declaration of independence.

The event will also mark the 445th anniversary of the Act of Abjuration, the Dutch Declaration of Independence. This historic document inspired the American Declaration of Independence, despite the two centuries, the ocean, and the cultural divide separating 1581 and 1776.

On July 3, historian, journalist, and chairman of the Dutch Independence Foundation Geerten Waling will speak about his longstanding fascination with this subject, drawing on insights from his recently published book America, That’s Us.

This year, the Dutch American historian James Kennedy will deliver the Dutch Independence Address, offering a perspective on relations between his two countries and on the value of national independence in politically challenging times.

More background to this invitation
Please find me available for your team to provide more background. I enclose a fact sheet of our Foundation. Our contacts with Greenland started with Mr. Nielsen and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who directed us to the Human Rights Committee. From there we followed our own path which led to Mrs.Chemnitz

Would you like to attend this special occasion, please register through this link. We look forward to welcoming you on 3 July.