Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha have been accused of ‘masterful spin’ by the leaders of Greenland after they made changes to a planned visit to the island.
The Vances will now visit the U.S. Space Force outpost at Pituffik, on the northwest coast of Greenland, instead of Usha Vance’s previously announced solo trip to the Avannaata Qimussersu dogsled race.
‘I have to speak diplomatically here, but in many ways it’s a masterful spin to make it look like they’re escalating when really they’re de-escalating,’ Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told Danish broadcaster DR on Wednesday.
Løkke also called the visit a ‘positive’ development after his initial fury at the trip.
‘I think it’s very positive that the Americans have canceled their visit among Greenlandic society. They will only visit their own base, Pituffik, and we have nothing against that,’ he said.
It came as President Donald Trump doubled down on his desire to take over the island.
‘We need Greenland for international safety and security. We need it. We have to have it,’ he told podcaster Vince Coglianese. ‘I hate to put it that way, but we’re going to have to have it.’
Vice President JD Vance and wife Usha Vance visit the U.S. Space Force outpost at Pituffik
Vance, in a video posted online, said he was joining his wife because he ‘didn’t want her to have all this fun by herself.’ He added that he would ‘just check out what’s going on with the security there of Greenland.’
‘We want to reinvigorate the security of Greenland because we think it’s important to protecting the security of the entire world,’ Vance said.
The change in plans also will reduce the likelihood that the Vances will cross paths with residents angered by Trump’s attempts to annex the island, which is a semi-autonomous Danish territory.
‘The cars (from the US advance security detail) that were delivered a few days ago are in the process of being sent back home, and the wife of the US vice president and the national security adviser will not visit Greenlandic society,’ Løkke said.
‘The matter is being wound up and that’s positive,’ he added.
The couple’s visit comes as Trump has doubled down on his determination to annex the island. And after a series of Signal messages published by The Atlantic revealed the vice president called Europe ‘freeloaders.’
Vance accused Denmark and previous US presidents of ‘ignoring’ the island ‘for far too long.’
‘Leaders in America and in Denmark ignored Greenland for far too long and that’s been bad for Greenland. It’s also been bad for the security of the entire world. We think we can take things in a different direction so I’m gonna go check it out,’ he said.
Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, where the Vances will visit
Apartment buildings and houses are pictured in Nuuk, Greenland
Additionally, the decision to visit a U.S. military base has removed the risk of violating potential diplomatic taboos by sending a delegation to another country without an official invitation.
Greenland leaders made it clear that the U.S. delegation was neither invited nor wanted
Pituffik Space Base
Pituffik Space Base is one of the most strategically important military sites in the world.
It serves as an early detection site for missile launches.
About 150 U.S. Air Force and Space Force personnel are permanently stationed there.
Its name changed two year ago from Thule to Pituffik, which means in Greenlandic ‘the place we tie our dogs.’
Pituffik Space Base
Greenland is strategically important for the U.S. military and its ballistic missile early-warning system.
It holds a commanding position in the Arctic, as a buffer between North America and Russia.
The island, which is three times the size of Texas, has no army and relies on Denmark for protection.
A 1951 agreement between the United States and Denmark established a U.S. right to move around freely and construct military bases in Greenland as long as Denmark and Greenland are notified.
Originally, Usha Vance’s office said the second lady would arrive Thursday in Greenland and return Saturday.
She and one of the couple’s three children had planned to visit historic sites, watch a dog race, and learn about Greenland´s culture.
Michael Waltz, the national security adviser, was to accompany her.
Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede called the trip ‘highly aggressive.’
Egede noted that ‘it has not extended any invitations for any visits, neither private nor official.’
Denmark blasted the visit, calling it part of an ‘unacceptable pressure’ on them.
‘It is clearly not a visit that concerns Greenland’s needs or wishes. That’s why I have to say it’s an unacceptable pressure being placed on Greenland and Denmark — and it’s pressure we will stand up to,’ Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told Danish broadcasters DR and TV2.
‘President Trump is serious,’ she said. ‘He wants Greenland.’
Trump’s desire to expand America’s territory has triggered a spat between Copenhagen and the White House.
Protesters outside the U.S. consulate in Nuuk, Greenland
Polls show that nearly all Greenlanders oppose becoming part of the United States, and anti-American protesters, some wearing ‘Make America Go Away’ caps and holding ‘Yankees go home’ banners, have been seen on the island with some of the protests outside the US consulate in the capital, Nuuk.
Questions remain about why Trump wants the self-governing territory.
The president has said Greenland is important to America’s national security and poorly protected by Denmark. He’s also noted he wants access to its critical minerals.
But mainly he talks about owning it – a desire he originally expressed in his first administration.
He also has pushed for America to retake control of the Panama Canal and has called Canada the 51st state.
‘I think Greenland’s going to be something that maybe is in our future,’ Trump said at a cabinet meeting Monday. ‘I think it’s important. It’s important from the standpoint of international security.’