Trump Jr. Visits Greenland as Trump Revives Talk of a U.S. Takeover of the Island
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Donald Trump Jr. is heading to Greenland, visiting the Danish territory as his father has continued to stoke seemingly far-fetched suggestions that the U.S. could take control of it.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]The younger Trump is going for a day trip to shoot video content for podcasting and will not be meeting with any government officials or political figures, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to speak publicly.
“I am hearing that the people of Greenland are ‘MAGA.’ My son, Don Jr, and various representatives, will be traveling there to visit some of the most magnificent areas and sights,” President-elect Donald Trump posted on his social media site on Monday night, referring to his “Make America Great Again” movement
“Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation,” the President-elect wrote. “We will protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside World. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”
Danish broadcaster DR cited the head of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Mininnguaq Kleist, in reporting that Trump Jr. would be arriving Tuesday for a private visit, and there are no inquiries about a meeting with the Greenland government.
Greenland’s prime minister, Múte B. Egede, hasn’t commented. The island is an autonomous territory that’s part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
Trump has had designs on Greenland before. In a statement last month as he announced his pick for U.S. ambassador to Denmark, he wrote, “For purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.”
Trump’s eldest son has become a prominent player in his father’s political movement and has served on his presidential transition team, helping to select the people who will staff the incoming White House.
But Trump Jr. has said he has no plans to join his father’s administration, instead intending to stay a key supporter of his father and his agenda from the outside. He’s especially vocal online, where he often indulges in trolling and sharing memes and hosts his own twice-a-week podcast, “Triggered With Don Jr.”
Greenland media reported that Trump Jr. may meet with Erik Jensen, the chairman of the governing party Siumut and the island’s equivalent to finance minister. But the person familiar with his plans said that Trump Jr. wouldn’t meet with Jensen.
Also Monday, Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Tesla and a close advisor to the President-elect, said on X, the social media site he owns, that “The People of Greenland should decide their future and I think they want to be part of America!”
During his first term, Trump mused about purchasing Greenland, which gained home rule from Denmark in 1979. He even canceled a scheduled trip to Denmark in August 2019 after its prime minister dismissed the idea.
The world’s largest island, Greenland sits between the Atlantic and Arctic oceans and is 80% covered by an ice sheet and is home to a large U.S. military base.
In response to Trump’s December statement, Egede said, “Greenland is ours.”
“We are not for sale and will never be for sale,” he said in a statement. “We must not lose our years-long fight for freedom.”
Greenland has its own parliament and government headed by Egede. New elections are expected to take place no later than April 6.
Aaja Chemnitz, a member of Greenland’s parliament wrote in a post on Facebook that people in Greenland need to get better at saying no to the President-elect, writing that it is “incredible that some can be so naive to think happiness is made by us becoming American citizens” and that she doesn’t “want to be a piece of Trump’s hot dreams of expanding his empire to include our country.”
“Don’t let Trump control the Greenland election campaign and leave the population as losers in that game,” Chemnitz wrote.
—Price reported from New York. Associated Press writer David Keyton contributed to this report from Berlin.