Protesters gather in front of the U.S. consulate during a demonstration, under the slogan, “Greenland belongs to the Greenlandic people”, in Nuuk, Greenland, March 15, 2025.
Christian Klindt Soelbeck | Via Reuters
The battle over Greenland is set to intensify this week as Denmark’s prime minister travels to the Arctic island just days after U.S. Vice President JD Vance visited and lambasted the Scandinavian country for neglecting the vast territory.
The Danish government announced at the weekend that Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen will visit Greenland from Wednesday to Thursday. Her visit comes amid continuing U.S. interest in the island, which U.S. President Donald Trump has said should become a part of the U.S.
During her visit, Frederiksen will “discuss the cooperation between Greenland and Denmark” with the island’s new Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, the Danish government said.
“I look forward to continuing the close and trusting cooperation between Greenland and Denmark together with Jens-Frederik Nielsen and the rest of the Government of Greenland,” Frederkisen commented ahead of the trip.
“Greenland has just been through a good democratic process and formed a broad government. It is important for me to visit and greet the future Chairman of the Government of Greenland as soon as possible,” she said, referring to a snap election earlier in March.
The vote, which was contested by mainly pro-independence parties, saw the pro-business Democrats win the largest share of the seats in the 31-seat parliament, the Inatsisartut.
The party favors a gradual process of independence from Denmark, but new Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen has reiterated comments made by his predecessor that the island “is not and will never be for sale.”
Greenland’s pro-independence sentiment means overseer Denmark has to tread carefully when it comes to the island’s future, although it will have been cheered by a recent poll showing a vast majority of Greenlanders did not want the island to leave Denmark and become a part of the U.S.
Danish leader Frederiksen said the island has her “deepest respect” over how its people and politicians were handling what she described as “the great pressure” from the U.S.’ repeated attempts to court the rare earths and mineral-rich island.
“It is a situation that calls for unity across political parties. Across the countries in the Danish Realm. And on cooperation in a respectful and equal way,” Frederiksen remarked.
While Greenland is an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, it has historical ties to the U.S., housing American military installations since WWII.
Growing geopolitical competition in the Arctic between Russia, China and the U.S. has also bolstered the appeal of the island, which lies on potentially highly lucrative shipping routes through the Arctic Ocean.
Vance’s visit stirs Demark
Denmark’s decision to make its presence felt on the island comes days after VP Vance and his wife visited the island, causing consternation in Greenland and Denmark.
Vance on Friday accused Denmark of underinvesting in the security of Greenland and claimed other European allies had failed to keep pace with defense spending.
“Denmark hasn’t done a good job at keeping Greenland safe,” Vance told service members at the Pituffik Space Base in Greenland on Friday.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance tours the U.S. military’s Pituffik Space Base in Greenland on March 28, 2025.
Jim Watson | Via Reuters
“We know that too often our allies in Europe have not kept pace, they haven’t kept pace with military spending and Denmark has not kept pace in devoting the resources necessary to keep this base, to keep our troops, and in my view, to keep the people of Greenland safe from a lot of very aggressive incursions from Russia, China and other nations with interest in this area,” Vance told reporters.
Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to gain control of the autonomous Danish territory, describing the prospect as an “absolute necessity” for U.S. national security.
Undeterred by Denmark and Greenland’s rejections of the U.S.’ advances, the president again told NBC News in an interview on Saturday: “We’ll get Greenland. Yeah, 100%.”
He said there’s a “good possibility that we could do it without military force … I don’t take anything off the table.”
US Vice President JD Vance (C) poses with Second Lady Usha Vance (2nd L), National Security Advisor Mike Waltz (3rd L), his wife , former homeland security advisor, Julia Nesheiwat (L) and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright (R) as they tour the US military’s Pituffik Space Base on March 28, 2025 in Pituffik, Greenland.
Jim Watson | Getty Images
Greenland’s economy is primarily centered on fishing, but the island’s deposits of rare earths and critical minerals, used in electronics, energy and defense, have prompted international interest. Global warming and ice loss are making some of the world’s largest untapped critical mineral reserves more accessible, making it a prime target for the Trump administration.
— CNBC’s April Roach and Sophie Kiderlin contributed reporting to this story
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