The trip to the semi-autonomous Danish territory comes as relations between the US and the Nordic country nosedived after President Donald Trump repeatedly suggested that the US should control the island.
US Vice President JD Vance, his wife and other senior US officials have visited an American military base in Greenland, part of a trip that was scaled back following an uproar among Greenlanders and Danes who were angry that the original itinerary was planned without consulting them.
Soon after arriving on Friday, Vance briefly addressed US troops stationed at the base as he and his wife sat down to lunch with them, saying that that he’s “really interested in Arctic security.”
“As you all know, it’s a big issue and it’s only going to get bigger over the coming decades,” said Vance, who was scheduled later to receive briefings from military officials and deliver remarks.
The revised trip to the semi-autonomous Danish territory comes as relations between the US and the Nordic country have nosedived after US President Donald Trump repeatedly suggested that the United States should control the mineral-rich territory of Denmark, a traditional US ally and NATO member.
Friday’s one-day visit to the US Space Force outpost at Pituffik on Greenland’s northwest coast removed the risk of potentially violating diplomatic custom by sending a delegation to another country without an official invitation.
It will also reduce the likelihood that Vance and his wife will cross paths with residents angered by Trump’s threats of seizing control of the island.
During his visit, Vance was expected to receive briefings and deliver remarks to US service members on the base, according to the vice president’s office.
His delegation includes the national security advisor, Mike Waltz, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
According to a senior White House official, Vance was expected to make the case that Danish leaders have “spent decades mistreating the Greenlandic people, treating them like second-class citizens and allowing infrastructure on the island to fall into disrepair.”
The official, who was not authorised to comment publicly and requested anonymity to preview the vice president’s message, added that Vance would emphasise the importance of bolstering Arctic security in places like Pituffik.
Ahead of Vance’s arrival, four of the five parties elected to Greenland’s parliament earlier this month signed an agreement to form a new coalition government.
Those parties have come together in the face of Trump’s designs on the territory.
“It is a time when we as a population are under pressure,” the prime minister-designate, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said before the accord was signed to applause and cheers in the capital, Nuuk.
He added that “we must stick together. Together we are strongest,” Greenland broadcaster KNR reported.
In a post on Instagram, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen congratulated Nielsen and his incoming government, and said that “I look forward to close cooperation in an unnecessarily conflict-filled time.”
Frederiksen said on Tuesday that the US visit, which was originally set for three days, created “unacceptable pressure.”
She has said that Denmark wants to work with the US on defence and security, but Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders.
Initially, second lady Usha Vance had announced a solo trip to the Avannaata Qimussersu dogsled race in Sisimiut.
Her husband then subsequently said he would join her, only to change the itinerary again, after protests from Greenland and Denmark, to a one-day visit to the military post only.
In an interview on Wednesday, Trump repeated his desire for US control of Greenland.
Asked if the people there were keen to become US citizens, Trump said he didn’t know “but I think we have to do it and we have to convince them.”
