ITV News Correspondent Geraint Vincent has the latest from Greenland ahead of the US Vice President's visit
US Vice President JD Vance has announced he will join his wife Usha on her trip to Greenland later this week.In a video posted on his X account on Tuesday, Vance said he will visit "guardians in the Space Force on the northwest coast" and “check out what’s going on with the security” in Greenland, adding that “a lot of other countries” have threatened Greenland and “threatened to use its territories and its waterways to threaten the United States.”
“Speaking for President Trump, we want to reinvigorate the security of the people of Greenland because we think it’s important to protecting the security of the entire world,” he added.
US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz is also set to visit the country this week on a separate trip.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has spoken out about the high level US visits to Greenland, in an interview with Danish public broadcasters."President Trump is serious," Frederiksen said. "He wants Greenland. Therefore, it cannot be seen independently of anything else. "No matter how we twist it, there is a completely unacceptable pressure on both Greenland, the Greenlandic politicians and the Greenlandic population. But it is also in Denmark and thus the entire kingdom."
US President Donald Trump irked much of Europe by suggesting the United States should in some form control the self-governing, mineral-rich territory of American ally Denmark.
As the nautical gateway to the Arctic and North Atlantic approaches to North America, Greenland has broader strategic value as both China and Russia also seek access to its waterways and the nearby natural resources.
The vice president's decision to visit a US military base in Greenland has removed the risk of violating potential diplomatic taboos by sending a delegation to another country without an official invite.
Yet Vance has also criticised longstanding European allies for relying on military support from the United States, openly antagonizing partners in ways that have generated concerns about America's reliability.
The White House had previously presented Mrs Vance’s visit as a cultural one, and said the second lady “will travel to Greenland with her son and a United States delegation to visit historical sites, learn about Greenlandic heritage, and attend the Avannaata Qimussersu, Greenland’s national dogsled race.”
The White House now says the visit to Pituffik Space Base will take place "in lieu of the Second Lady’s previously announced visit to the Avannaata Qimussersu dogsled race in Sisimit".
Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede had spoken out against the visit of Vance's wife, Usha, saying it is an act of “clear provocation” amid Donald Trump's threats to bring Greenland under US control.
Speaking about Mrs Vance's visit, Ms Mette Frederiksen said in her interview with Danish broadcasters: "You cannot arrange a private visit with official representatives from another country.
"A visit to Greenland, where the acting Greenlandic government has very clearly stated that they do not want a visit right now because there is no government, so such official meetings cannot be held. I have said several times since January 7th that I, and we, take this situation very seriously. President Trump is serious and he is earnest. He wants Greenland."
She stressed that the US is an ally of both Denmark and Greeland, adding: "But it is clear that when a visit is made in this manner and the Greenlandic politicians, both those negotiating the government now and the government after the election, clearly state that they do not want this visit, it cannot be interpreted as respectful."
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The world's biggest island, Greenland has been controlled by Denmark for around 300 years.
Denmark ruled Greenland as a colony until 1953, when the island achieved greater powers of self-governance.
In 2009, it gained more powers pertaining to minerals, policing and courts of law, but Denmark still controls security, defence, foreign and monetary policy.
Greenland also benefits from Denmark’s European Union and NATO memberships.
While Greenlandic politicians have repeatedly signalled they are opposed to annexation, they are open to deals with the United States for rare earth mining, expanding tourism, stronger diplomatic connections and other investments.
In January, the president’s son Donald Trump Junior made headlines with a visit to Greenland.
“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!” Trump Junior posted on social media at the time.
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