Danish PM
accuses US of ‘unacceptable pressure’ over planned Greenland visit
Mette
Frederiksen says trip by members of the Trump administration ‘not what
Greenland needs or wants’
Miranda
Bryant Nordic correspondent
Tue 25 Mar
2025 14.25 GMT
Mette
Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, has accused the US of putting
“unacceptable pressure” on Greenland – which she has vowed to resist – before
an unsolicited visit to the Arctic island by members of the Trump
administration.
The White
House surprised Nuuk and Copenhagen on Sunday by announcing that a US
delegation led by the second lady, Usha Vance, would be arriving in Greenland
later this week.
Also due to
participate in the visit from Thursday to Saturday are the White House national
security adviser, Mike Waltz, now embroiled in an embarrassing security leak,
and the energy secretary, Chris Wright.
“I have to
say that it is unacceptable pressure being placed on Greenland and Denmark in
this situation. And it is pressure that we will resist,” Frederiksen told
Danish channel TV 2 on Tuesday.
The Danish
leader also dismissed the idea of the trip being a private visit, saying: “You
cannot make a private visit with official representatives from another
country.”
Trump’s
threats to acquire Greenland, she said, should be taken seriously. “President
Trump is serious … He wants Greenland. Therefore, it cannot be seen
independently of anything else,” she told Danmarks Radio (DR).
She said:
“It is clearly not a visit that is about what Greenland needs or what Greenland
wants from a visit. Therefore, no matter how we twist it, it is a completely
unacceptable pressure on Greenland, the Greenlandic politicians and the
Greenlandic population, but it is also on Denmark and thus the kingdom.”
Copenhagen,
Greenland’s former colonial ruler, retains control of security and foreign
policy in the autonomous territory, which is still part of the kingdom of
Denmark. Trump has repeatedly stated his desire for the US to gain control over
the island, which he has said is crucial for American security.
Greenland’s
prime minister, Múte Bourup Egede, has accused Washington of “foreign
interference” in relation to the planned visit, amid political uncertainty in
the territory as coalition talks continue less than a fortnight after a general
election.
The US
president responded by saying the delegation had been invited by “officials” on
the Greenlandic side. “People from Greenland are asking us to go there,” he
told reporters on Monday.
The Nuuk
government, however, disputed that. “For the record, the Greenlandic government
has not issued any invitations for visits, either official or private,” it said
in a statement. “The current government is acting as an interim government
pending the formation of a new coalition, and we have kindly requested all
countries to respect this process.”
The
territory is led by a caretaker government as the Greenlandic Democrats
continue with coalition talks following an election earlier this month. On
Monday, Greenland’s most US and Trump-friendly party, Naleraq, left
negotiations over their belief that Greenland should rapidly declare
independence.
Kuno
Fencker, a member of parliament for Naleraq, which came second to the Democrats
in the election, said the party had been “thrown out” of coalition talks, in
part because of the upcoming US visit.
“It has an
effect because many of the members think that we, especially me, are selling
the country to the US,” he said, adding that it was not in his authority to do
so.
Accusing the
Danish media of “fear-mongering” over the US and Trump, he said: “Divide and
rule is being used extremely towards Greenland and fear-mongering about the
United States. And especially Donald Trump is framed as the big villain, big
bad wolf, here.”
The White
House has said Waltz and Wright will visit the US space force base in Pituffik,
in the north of Greenland, for briefings from US personnel, and they are
expected to join Vance to visit historical sites and attend a dog-sled race.
The White
House National Security Council has said the delegation aimed to “learn about
Greenland, its culture, history and people”.
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