Trump Jr. Visited Greenland After Dad’s New Proposals About Buying the Country
The businessman Donald Trump Jr.'s Greenland visit was heralded and closely followed by his father, Donald J. Trump, who will soon be re-instated as the US president. (Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0)
The US president-elect, Donald J. Trump, believes American "ownership and control over Greenland to be a necessity" and does not rule out the use of military force. His son visited the Arctic island yesterday. Greenlandic leaders emphasize that the country seeks to be an independent state but is open to more cooperation with the US.
"I am hearing that the people of Greenland are “MAGA.” My son, Don Jr, and various representatives, will be traveling there to visit some of the most magnificent areas and sights," wrote Donald J. Trump on Truth Social on Tuesday.
"Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside World. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!" continued the president-elect.
His son, Donald Trump Jr., and his entourage landed in Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday afternoon (GMT+1). The island is an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
"The reception has been great. They, and the Free World, need safety, security, strength, and PEACE! This is a deal that must happen," reported Trump senior on the same platform last night.
As the visit was not an official one, neither the Greenlandic government, Naalakkersuisut, nor its officials met with Trump Jr., informed the Greenlandic Ministry of Independence and Foreign Affairs.
Trump Jr.'s agenda for the visit was not elaborated, but he has said he was there as a tourist and promised good content about Greenland in his podcast series Triggered.
Donald J. Trump has shared photos from his son's visit to Greenland. Donald Trump Jr. poses in front of the camera with Greenlanders wearing MAGA hats and with personnel from the Trump family's private aircraft, the Trump Force One. He was reportedly on a one-day trip to the island. (Screenshot from Truth Social)
Does not exclude the use of force
While Trump Jr. was in Greenland, Trump senior also held a press conference at his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago.
Asked if he could assure the world he would not use military or economic coercion in trying to gain control over Greenland and also the Panama Canal, he stated the following:
"No, I can't assure you on either of those two. But I can say this, we need them for economic security."
"Will never be for sale"
Trump Jr.'s travel to Nuuk took place about two weeks after President-elect Trump announced that Ken Howery would be the new ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark, focusing particularly on Greenland:
"For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity," he wrote on Truth Social.
Trump's statements echo his first presidential term when he expressed a desire to buy the island in the North Atlantic Ocean.
"Greenland is ours. We are not for sale, and we will never be for sale. Our years-long struggle for independence will not be lost. However, we will continue to be open to cooperation and trade with the entire world, particularly our neighbors. All cooperation and trade cannot go via Denmark," responded the Prime Minister of Greenland, Múte Bourup Egede (IA), on his Facebook page on December 23rd.
Egede repeated this message in his New Year's speech, in which he also underlined the Greenlandic work toward secession from Denmark and the establishment of an independent state.
Múte B. Egede, Prime Minister of Greenland and Party Leader of Inuit Ataqatigiit. (Photo: Naalakkersuisut)
Danish focus on respect
On Tuesday afternoon, Denmark's PM Mette Frederiksen (S) also commented on President-elect Trump's statements before his aforementioned press conference:
"My government and I's point of view is very clear: the future of Greenland is defined in Greenland," Frederiksen said to TV2 News, writes Berlingske.
The PM added that "Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders" and reffered to Egede's rejection of selling the island.
"I want to encourage everyone – that is, all allies and cooperation partners abroad, but also politicians here at home – to respect that we are in a new era and that any discussion about Greenland shall start and end in Nuuk and not in all other sorts of places," she stated to DR.
The Danish parliament representative Ramus Jarlov (KF), Chair of the Defense Committee and member of the Committees for Arctic, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands, is also concerned with respect regarding this matter.
"This level of disrespect from the coming US president towards very, very loyal allies and friends is record-setting," he wrote on X on Tuesday.
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. (Photo: Eythor Arnason/norden.org)
Seeks insight into Trump's plans
Naalakkersuisut consists of a coalition between the parties Inuit Ataqatigiit and Siumut.
In Boxing Week, Erik Jensen, the party leader of Siumut and Greenland's Naalakkersuisoq (minister) of Finance and Taxes, expressed a desire for dialogue and meetings with president-elect Trump.
"The interest of the world's great powers, including the US, is a clear sign of our geopolitical significance. We acknowledge this as an opportunity to create new relations and strengthen our path toward independence," wrote Jensen on the party's website and continued:
"Although Trump knows Greenland is not for sale, we want to underline that he is more than welcome to visit Greenland and that we of Siumut are open to visiting him in the US."
Erik Jensen, the party leader of Siumut and Greenland's Naalakkersuisoq of Finance and Taxes. (Photo: Siumut)
"Greenland's location in the Arctic makes us a central actor in the region. As a country between the world's great powers, it is essential to discuss how existing agreements, such as the defense agreement from 1951 and the Igaliku agreement from 2004 [an update of the former agreement, ed. note], can be adapted so that they can yield positive results for the Greenlandic population," Jensen pointed out.
"We also want insight into Trump's plans for strategic areas, such as Pituffik, Kangerlussuaq, and Narsarsuaq," he added.
More specifically, he refers to the US Space Force's base Pituffik (formerly known as Thule Air Station) on Greenland's northwest coast and the military use of the airports in Kangerlussuaq and Narsarsuaq (both former US air stations) in western and southern Greenland, respectively.
US forces during the Arctic Edge exercise at Pituffik Space Base, Greenland. (Photo: Andrew Adams/US Army)
Possible areas of cooperation
The minister also emphasized Greenland's aim of a self-sustaining economy and presented possibilities for mutually beneficial collaboration with the US in several areas.
"Greenland is in full swing with strengthening its infrastructure, thereby opening up more to the world around us. This will also entail that we would like to export our fantastic fish, shellfish, etc. more directly to the outside world, as well as develop the tourism sector. But there are also great opportunities within trade and raw materials that we would like to exploit further," Jensen outlined and continued:
"In addition, we likely have the world's purest water and significant mineral resources, which we must admit to not exploiting well enough yet, and which we would be happy to develop and cooperate with the US on."
"In my time as Naalakkersuisoq of Raw Materials, I had several meetings with US officials during Trump's first presidential term. These experiences have me convinced that a direct dialogue with President Trump could lead to more concrete development opportunities. Today, we already have a good cooperation with the EU on our resources, and we can build a similar relation directly with the US without interference from other countries," he maintained.
