Trump Jr visits Greenland after his father suggests US ownership of Nuuk

Donald Trump Jr. arrived in Greenland's capital Nuuk for a private visit on Tuesday, shortly after his father, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, reiterated his interest in the resource-rich Arctic island. 

Trump Jr. arrived in his father's "Trump Force One" private plane at about 1250 GMT, according to a livestream from Nuuk airport and flight tracking websites. 

The visit to a freezing, snow-covered Nuuk was expected to last four to five hours, and no meetings were scheduled with government officials, a local official told Reuters. 

"No, I am not buying Greenland," Trump Jr. said in a podcast on Monday, alluding to his father's recent comments. "Funny enough, I'm actually going on a very long personal day trip to Greenland." 

 

Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, is geographically part of the North American continent, and its capital Nuuk is closer to New York than to the Danish capital Copenhagen. 

On Monday, President-elect Trump praised the island on his social media platform Truth Social, promising to "MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!", 

"Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation," he wrote. 

Trump added that his son was visiting Greenland to see "some of the most magnificent areas and sights." In 2019, Trump postponed a scheduled Denmark visit after Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen rebuffed his idea of the U.S.

purchasing Greenland. 

Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, has signalled he would pursue a foreign policy unbound by diplomatic niceties, threatening to take control of the Panama Canal and stating last month that U.S. control of Greenland is an "absolute necessity."  Denmark, a close NATO ally, has seen relations with Greenland worsen in recent years, prompted by revelations of misconduct by its former colonial ruler Denmark. 

Greenland's Prime Minister Mute Egede has stated that the island is not for sale, but in his New Year speech stepped up a push for independence from Denmark. 

Denmark's PM Frederiksen, told broadcaster TV2 on Tuesday: "We need very close cooperation with the Americans." "On the other hand, I would like to encourage everyone to respect that the Greenlanders are a people, it is their country, and only Greenland can determine and define Greenland's future," she said.