Greenland’s new Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, begins his first official visit to Denmark on Sunday, with a focus on cooperation and the “geopolitical situation” amid US interest in the autonomous Danish territory.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen, who leads a coalition government after his centre-right party, The Democrats, won the Greenland parliamentary elections in March, will undertake this two-day visit.
This marks the first official visit to Denmark by Nielsen and follows Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s trip to the Arctic territory in early April.
“I will first and foremost resume discussions with the Prime Minister on the geopolitical situation and cooperation,” Nielsen stated in a recent communiqué. He emphasised the importance of making plans for future cooperation in the current context.
Tensions between the United States and Denmark have been high since President Donald Trump repeatedly expressed interest in acquiring the island, citing security reasons and not ruling out the use of force to claim the Arctic territory.
During his visit to Copenhagen, Nielsen will also meet with King Frederik X and members of Parliament. The Danish Royal House announced that the King will depart for Greenland on Monday, where he will stay until Thursday.
Polls indicate that a significant majority of Greenland’s 57,000 residents desire independence from Denmark but oppose becoming part of the United States.
