Denmark renews green maritime tech and shipbuilding pact with China

China and Denmark have renewed an agreement on cooperating in green maritime ⁠technology and shipbuilding, China's industry ministry said on Tuesday, reaffirming a long-term partnership in the sector.

The renewal ‍comes amid heightened tensions between Denmark and U.S. President Donald Trump, who has said he ‌wants to control Denmark's semi-autonomous island ‍of Greenland to protect the Arctic region from security threats, including China.

China is willing to conduct joint research and development with Denmark on low-carbon and zero-carbon fuel-powered ship technologies and explore cooperation in the new energy vehicle sector, Chinese Industry Minister Li Lecheng told Danish Business and Industry Minister Morten Bodskov, according to a readout of their meeting from the Chinese side.

Li ⁠also told Bodskov that China was willing to deepen "strategic alignment" with Denmark and contribute more to global green development.

Coinciding with Bodskov's talks in Beijing was an official visit by Petteri Orpo, the prime minister of Finland, a leader in the design and production of icebreaker ships needed to ‌ply emerging Arctic trade routes.

Orpo, who is in Beijing from January 25 to 28, told Chinese leader Xi Jinping that he looked forward to continued discussions on bilateral cooperation and international ‍issues, according to a media pool report of their meeting.

The pledges by the two Nordic ‍countries to ‍expand cooperation with Beijing stand in sharp ⁠contrast to Trump's narrative that ‍China is a security threat to the Arctic region.

Beijing's agreement with Denmark also portrays China as more in step with Nordic states than Trump, who has described the green ⁠industry as ‌the "Green New Scam".