Greenland, Still Not For Sale. And the Mona Lisa Gets Its Own Room.
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Today on State of the World, Greenland is not for sale. But even if it was, buying it would be far from straightforward. And big plans ahead for the Louvre and its most famous painting. You're listening to State of the World from NPR, the day's most vital international stories, up close where they are happening. It's Wednesday, January 29th. I'm Christine Arismith.

Paris' iconic museum is set for a major renovation, and we'll visit in a moment. But first, to Greenland. President Trump has spoken often of his desire to buy the Arctic territory. Greenland is rich in natural resources. It's strategic for shipping routes as the Arctic ice melts. But Greenland is part of Denmark, and it's not for sale.

Even if it were, Trump may face a competing claim from one of America's closest allies. From London, NPR's Lauren Frayer explains. 1917, sending our boys across to make the world safe for democracy.

1917 was a big year. The U.S. entered World War I. Russia had a revolution. One of the lesser-known events was a deal in which the U.S. paid Denmark $25 million for what are now called the U.S. Virgin Islands. And in exchange, the U.S. recognized Denmark's claim to Greenland. They signed a bilateral treaty. But another country was also involved. The other country was United Kingdom.

Tom Hoyum served as Denmark's representative in Greenland. He visited 46 times, wrote a book about it, and is an expert on the territory's history. He explains that the UK was part of those treaty talks because of Canada, which is right next to Greenland and was under British control back then.

And Hoyem says the U.K. made a claim of its own. They were granted the right that if Denmark got this stupid idea to sell Greenland, then the United Kingdom had the first right to buy it or to be consulted. So if Trump tries to buy Greenland, he may have to ask the U.K. first.

Now, this quirk of history, which Hoyum describes, is not well known. It's not mentioned in the 1917 treaty and is probably not legally binding, says Jennifer Spence, an Arctic expert at Harvard. If we started opening up historical agreements on all former colonies of different countries, things would get pretty chaotic pretty quickly. Russia could come to the United States and ask for Alaska back. No.

No matter what officials may have said back in 1917, the UK Foreign Office tells NPR it has no plans to get involved now and considers this a matter for the people of Greenland and Denmark.

Aja Chemnitz is a Greenlander who serves in Denmark's parliament and finds all this talk of buying and selling. I think it's disrespectful towards the people living in Greenland. I think it's important to say that Greenland is not for sale. We live in 2025. You can't claim another person or this country is owning you. No. She says the future of Greenland should be up to Greenlanders. And polling shows they don't want to be bought.

not by an old imperial power or a new one. Lauren Freyer, NPR News, London. Now to Paris. It may be hard to believe that one of the most famous museums in the world is falling into disrepair. But the Louvre is in need of major renovation. This week, French President Emmanuel Macron announced an overhaul of the museum.

Visitors will get a new entrance, and the museum's most visited painting, the Mona Lisa, will finally get its own room.

NPR's Eleanor Beardsley has more. Standing in front of the Mona Lisa, President Emmanuel Macron announced a colossal project to bring the world's most visited art museum up to modern standards in a time of international mass tourism, the digital age, heightened security requirements and climate change.

And for those who think this might not be the time for a culture project with such disarray in the world, Macron had a message. It's especially important to embody a spirit of innovation and boldness and think ambitiously in an era where forceful rhetoric holds hypnotic sway over so many. The importance of culture and art is a message France must convey to the world.

This is also a political battle. In a letter leaked to the press this month, the museum's director detailed its state of dilapidation. Leaky ceilings, temperature fluctuations, a lack of facilities for visitors. Elaine Sciolino can attest to that. Her book, Adventures in the Louvre, How to Fall in Love with the World's Greatest Museum, comes out in April.

I have one unbreakable rule for visitors. Never go to the Louvre on an empty stomach or with a full bladder. Sciolino remembers seeing buckets collecting drops on one rainy day. She says the former palace is also vulnerable because it lies on the banks of the Seine. She remembers the flood of 2016. In 48 hours.

All of these employees wrapped and crated 35,000 art objects stored underneath and hauled them to higher ground. It was the museum's most ambitious evacuation since World War II. That's when Louvre employees spirited away thousands of artworks ahead of the Nazi invasion.

I meet art critic Didier Richner next to architect I.M. Pei's glorious glass pyramid, illuminated by the setting sun. I love it with the sun on it slightly. Commissioned in the 1980s by former President François Mitterrand, the pyramid entrance was designed to accommodate four million visitors a year. Today, there are twice that many.

Reikner says the Mona Lisa has been another challenge. It's a problem forever because Mona Lisa, everybody wants to see it and it is very difficult to manage with the people who want to see it because there are too many. To install the joconde...

La Joconde, or the Mona Lisa, said Macron will be given her own exhibition space. The six-year project will be fully funded by the museum's own resources, ticket sales, sponsorships, and the Louvre Abu Dhabi licensing agreement. Reckner believes the politically weakened Macron was looking for another sweeping project after Notre Dame. I think Emmanuel Macron wants to appear as the savior of the Louvre.

It's evident. Because he just saved Notre Dame. Yes, he just saved Notre Dame. He's a superhero and he wants to save the Louvre. Paris will hold an international architectural competition to build the new entrance and galleries, which will open by 2031 at the latest, says Macron. The reborn Louvre will be a world epicenter for art and the teaching of art history and aims to welcome some 12 million visitors a year. Eleanor Beardsley in PR News, Paris.

That's the state of the world from NPR. Thanks for listening.

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