NUUK, GREENLAND  – The comings and goings at Greenland’s new international airport in its capital Nuuk look a bit different of late, as journalists like me come here to see what all the fuss is about. The fuss, of course, is the result of US President Donald Trump’s interest in taking control of the massive island that is geographically part of North America but legally is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a member of NATO, the European Union, and a US ally. I wanted to drill down on what’s here, what makes it attractive and whether the local population is welcoming or hesitant about being in Trump’s sights.

Greenland is the front door for North America,” said Tom Dans, leaning into the arguments of Greenland’s importance to US national security. I’d wanted to speak to Dans, a private equity investor with prospective interests in the Arctic who campaigned for Trump, but I hadn’t expected to see him at the airport. To be fair, Dans wasn’t hard to spot. He’s a tall Texan with one of those wide shiny smiles wealthy Americans tend to have. He was also wearing a baseball cap emblazoned with the American flag.

He didn’t have more time to chat then, so I stepped outside, into the 14 Fahrenheit -10 Celsius cold that was, I would learn, balmy compared to what was to come later in the week. My CNN colleague Neil Bennett and I trudged through the snow to the back of a long line for taxis.You are here because Trump,” remarked a woman waiting in front of us. Not yet accustomed to the Nordic tone, I couldn’t quite tell if this was meant as a simple statement or an accusation. “We are,” I dutifully confirmed. They want more tourists to come here, they need to get more taxis,” she said. We needn’t worry too much though, she explained, we wouldn’t be waiting in the cold for too long. Despite the apparent shortage of taxis, they can’t go very far and return quickly. The trip to the center of Nuuk from the airport is about 4 miles and then the roads just stop. There is nowhere else to go, at least by car. Greenland three times the size of Texas has only about 56 miles of paved roads.  (CNN)