Greenland and Denmark seemed to show a cautious relief on Wednesday morning upon hearing the news that the Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, and his wife have changed their itinerary for their visit to Greenland on Friday, reducing the likelihood of them crossing paths with residents angry about the Trump administration’s attempts to annex the vast Arctic island, a semi-autonomous Danish territory.
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The couple will now visit the United States Space Force outpost in Pituffik, on the northwest coast of Greenland, instead of the previously announced plan where Usha Vance would attend the Avannaata Qimussersu dog sled race in Sisimiut.
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The President of the United States, Donald Trump, angered much of Europe by suggesting that his country should somehow control the autonomous and mineral-rich territory of Denmark, an ally of the United States and a NATO member. As a nautical gateway to the Arctic and the North Atlantic access to North America, Greenland has a broader strategic value, as both China and Russia seek access to its shipping routes and natural resources.
The vice president’s decision to visit a US military base in Greenland has eliminated the risk of violating possible diplomatic taboos by sending a delegation to another country without an official invitation. However, Vance has also criticized traditional European allies for relying on US military support, a position openly at odds with its partners in ways that have raised concerns about the reliability of the United States.
Vance’s visit raised concerns
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said on Wednesday to the Danish broadcaster DR that the Vance’s change in travel plans was something positive. The minister stated that it was a de-escalation, although he pointed out that the Americans are treating it as the opposite, with Vance suggesting in a video posted online that global security is at stake.
Rasmus Jarlov, Danish legislator and spokesperson for Greenlandic Affairs for the conservative party, wrote in X that the new itinerary implies that the Vances will avoid any confrontation with the Greenlanders. Jarlov pointed out that, after all, a vice president’s visit to a US military base is not controversial.
Vance is allowed to visit the space base, said Marc Jacobsen, professor at the Royal Danish Defense College, due to a 1951 agreement between Denmark and the United States regarding the defense of Greenland.
“What is controversial here is everything related to the timing,” he said. “Greenland and Denmark have very clearly stated that they do not want the United States to visit at this time, when Greenland does not have a government in place” following the elections earlier this month. Negotiations to form a coalition are underway.
Before the vice president’s announcement that he would join his wife’s trip, the discontent of the governments of Greenland and Denmark had been growing. The acting government of Greenland posted on Facebook on Monday night that they had not “extended any invitation for any visit, neither private nor official.”
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Tuesday to the national Danish television that the visit was “an unacceptable pressure,” while the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that they had not been involved in the planning of the trip.
Usha Vance’s office said on Sunday that she would depart for Greenland on Thursday and return on Saturday. She and one of the couple’s three children had planned to visit historical sites and learn about Greenland’s culture, but her husband’s involvement has redirected the trip towards national security, her office said.
The vice president said he didn’t want to let his wife “have so much fun alone” and mentioned that he plans to visit the Space Force. Vance stated that other countries have threatened Greenland, as well as the United States and Canada.
Vance said that leaders in Denmark and North America had “ignored” Greenland for “too long.”
During his first term, Trump raised the idea of buying the world’s largest island, even when Denmark insisted it was not for sale. The population of Greenland has also strongly rejected Trump’s plans.
Dwayne Ryan Menezes, founder and managing director of the Polar Research and Policy Initiative, said that the “intimidation” by the Trump administration towards Greenland could prove counterproductive.
Menezes said that if Trump was “smart enough” to understand the strategic importance of Greenland, then he should also be “smart enough to know that there is no better way to weaken the position of the United States and harm its long-term interests than by turning its back on its allies, the main asymmetric advantage it enjoys over its adversaries.”
Trump’s return to the White House has included a desire for territorial expansion, with aspirations to add Canada as the 51st state and regain US control of the Panama Canal. He has also indicated that US entities could take control of the territory in the war-torn Gaza Strip and turn it into a luxury resort, displacing up to two million Palestinians.