Trump's Envoy: United States Must 'Re-establish Its Footprint in Greenland'

(Patria) - U.S. Special Envoy for Greenland Jeff Landry, the Arctic island President Donald Trump desires, told AFP that the U.S. needs to re-establish its presence on the Danish autonomous territory.

At the height of the Cold War, Washington had seventeen military installations in Greenland, but it has closed them over the years and currently has only one - Pituffik base in the north of the island.

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the United States needs to control Greenland for national security reasons, arguing that if it does not, the island risks falling into the hands of China or Russia.

Greenland is located on the shortest missile route between Russia and the U.S. It is believed to have rare minerals and could be an important asset as polar ice melts and new shipping routes emerge.

"I think it's time for the U.S. to re-establish its footprint in Greenland," U.S. envoy Jeff Landry told AFP, concluding his first visit to the island since his appointment in December 2025.

"I think you see the President talking about increasing national security operations and re-establishing certain bases in Greenland," he said. "Greenland needs the U.S."

The United States wants to open three new bases in southern Greenland, according to recent media reports. A defense agreement from 1951, updated in 2004, allows Washington to increase the number of troops and military installations there, provided it notifies Denmark and Greenland in advance.

Independence?

Trump abandoned threats of annexing Greenland in January, and a U.S.-Danish-Greenlandic working group was established to address his concerns.

Even if the "master's" desire to "ensure control over Greenland... is completely disrespected... we are obliged to find a solution," Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen told reporters on the sidelines of the Greenlandic Economic Forum on Tuesday.

Landry, who is also the Republican governor of Louisiana, arrived in Greenland's capital, Nuuk, on Sunday. He was not officially invited, and his presence caused controversy on the island.

Greenlandic and Danish officials have repeatedly said that only Greenland can decide its future.

Landry met with Nielsen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Mute Egede on Monday.

Nielsen said the talks were "constructive," but noted that "there are no signs... that anything has changed" in the U.S. stance.

In an interview published in the Greenlandic daily newspaper Sermitsiaq on Wednesday, Landry fanned Greenland's dreams of independence.

Although polls show that most Greenlanders support gaining independence from Denmark one day, the government has no immediate plans, as many issues remain unresolved - primarily concerning the island's economy, which is largely dependent on Denmark.

"I think there are some incredible opportunities that can actually lift Greenlanders from dependence to independence," Landry said in the interview. "I think the President of the United States would want the country to become economically independent. And I think that's possible here."

Controversy surrounding Landry's visit was fueled by the fact that he was accompanied by a U.S. doctor, who told Danish television TV2 that he was there "to assess medical needs" in Greenland.

Denmark and Greenland rejected Trump's offer in February to send a hospital ship "to take care of the many people who are sick and not being taken care of there."

Greenlandic Health Minister Anna Wangenheim criticized the presence of the American doctor.

"Greenlanders are not guinea pigs in a geopolitical project," she said.