Unfolding the Concerns of Chinese Government and Companies in Greenland's Mining Sector

Agnoletti, Matteo

4. term

Development and International Relations, Master

2021

2021-05-27

65 pages

The actions of China in Greenland in the last few years have arisen many questions and concerns among third parties, especially with regards to the mining sector. In this context, the aim of this elaborate is to understand which are the main interests of China behind the investments in Greenland’s mining sector. The analysis will be developed following the perspective of two different points of view, the one of the Chinese Central Government, and one of three Chinese companies operating in Greenland’s mining sector which are taken into account. Two theoretical frameworks will be applied in this research, Waltz’s Neorealism to explain the interests of the Chinese Government in the Arctic island, and Mertha’s Fragmented Authoritarianism to explain the different possible policies followed by both the state itself and the three companies. The thesis will follow a deductive approach, making use of both qualitative and quantitative data. Three cases will be taken into account, the mine of Kvanefjeld, the one in Isua, and lastly the one by the Citronen Fjord. Of these three sites the research will focus on data such as the importance of the minerals extracted to China and the amount present in this area. Once analysed the possible reasons for the presence of the two stakeholders in Greenland, the outcomes will be conjuncted together, to see to what extent these motivations point to the same objective or are actually divergents.

Greenland ; China ; Mineral Sector ; Mining ; Chinese Companies ; Polar Silk Road ; SOEs

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