Donald Trump insists second lady’s Greenland trip is one of ‘friendship’ - the PM sees it differently

US President Donald Trump’s international shopping list is continuing to attract controversy this week, as second lady and wife to JD Vance, Usha Vance, is set to go on a trip on Thursday to Greenland - a country which Trump has repeatedly expressed an interest in making an American territory.

The Office of the Second Lady issued a press statement on Sunday in which it said Ms Vance would be accompanied by her son and a “United States delegation” to “learn about Greenlandic heritage” and attend the Danish country’s national dogsled race.

“Ms Vance and the delegation are excited to witness this monumental race and celebrate Greenlandic culture and unity,” it reads.

The planned visit has still faced criticism though, given Trump’s recent comments, but also in relation to Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency and its work to eliminate “wasteful” government spending (given the nature of the trip).

Now, Trump has addressed these concerns, telling reporters in The White House on Monday that his position on Greenland is “important from the standpoint of international security”.

He continued: “If you look at the ships outside of Greenland, you have Russia, you have China, you have lots of different people and lots of different places. It cannot go on the way in, it’s not going to go on the way it is.

“I’ll make a statement. It’s not going to happen.

“So they’re going there and that’s purely friendship … People from Greenland are asking us to go. We have many, many requests from many, many people – some officials, too.”

Except the prime minister of Greenland, Múte B. Egede, has shared his perspective on Ms Vance’s visit, and needless to say he certainly doesn’t see it as a friendly hello from the States. Instead, he’s called it “highly aggressive”.

According to Greenland’s Sermitsiaq newspaper, Egede said: “We are now at a level where it can in no way be characterised as a harmless visit from a politician’s wife.

“What is the national security adviser doing in Greenland? The only purpose is to demonstrate power over us.

“He is Trump’s confidential and closest adviser, and his presence in Greenland alone will certainly make the Americans believe in Trump’s mission, and the pressure will increase after the visit.”

This has prompted Twitter/X users to claim Trump “doesn’t understand ‘no means no’”:

And accuse the US president of “lying”:

Trump’s remarks came just days after another country eyed up by the Republican issued its own clapback, with newly sworn in Canadian prime minister Mark Carney releasing a campaign video with Mike Myers in which the Shrek star sports a “never 51” shirt in reference to the businessman’s reference to Canada being the “51st state of America”.

Why not read…

• Greenlanders fume over visit from US politicians: 'The signal is not to be misunderstood'
• JD Vance's 'shocking' comments on Greenland resurface

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