Paddy Belton
Leading Danish politicians have said there will be “no compromise” on Greenland in response to a high-profile visit by US Vice President JD Vance’s wife Usha Vance and US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz to a US military base in the country.
Greenland’s outgoing Prime Minister Múte Bourup Egede told journalists on March 23 the visit was “highly aggressive”.
On March 24, Danish MP Rasmus Jarlov, who chairs Denmark’s parliamentary defence committee, said: “There will be no compromise on this. Greenland will remain part of Denmark.
“Denmark will not sell Greenland. Denmark will not accept and will block any attempts of bribing the Greenlanders. Denmark will not change its stand regardless of threats from the USA,” added Jarlov, who is also Denmark’s Conservative Party spokesman on Greenlandic affairs.
His comments came after JD Vance told Fox News on March 23 that Greenland would ignore “the screaming of the Europeans”. Denmark “is not a good ally”, he added.
Usha Vance, Waltz and US energy secretary Chris Wright planned to visit the Pituffik US Space Base on the northwest coast, as well as watch a national dogsled race, over the weekend of March 29.
“I amexcited to announce my visit to Greenland next weekend with this special message for Greenlanders. Looking forward to seeing you soon,”said Usha Vance online.
US President Donald Trump has expressed interest in taking over the island, arguing Denmark was unable to guard the territory adequately against Russian and Chinese attempts to expand their influence in the Arctic Circle.
“Greenland is hard to defend,”stated theWashington Post on March 24.
Unconvinced residents of Greenland’s city of Sisimiutposted a red hat online with the message “Make America Go Away.”
After 100 additional police officers arrived on March 23 in advance of the visit, Jarlovsaid it was “great” that “now Danish taxpayers have to pay to protect tone-deaf American politicians from being lynched in Greenland”.
The US visitors would not have an opportunity to meet members of either Greenland’s caretaker government or the Democrats party that won the March 11 national elections, he said.
The visit, taking place during coalition talks and amid municipal elections, “once again shows a lack of respect for the Greenlandic people”, said Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the Democrats’ leader.
French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in January that the European Union would not “let other nations of the world attack its sovereign borders, whoever they are”.
Egede called the visit a “provocation” and on March 23 told Greenland’s newspaperSermitsiaq his caretaker government would not meet with the delegation.
“What is the national security advisor doing in Greenland? The only purpose is to demonstrate power over us,” he added.