President Donald Trump has announced plans to send a U.S. Navy hospital ship to Greenland. He says the move will help care for sick people on the island who are not getting proper treatment.
In a social media post late Saturday, Trump wrote that the ship is on its way “to take care of the many people who are sick, and not being taken care of there. It’s on the way!!!”
The announcement came after Trump met with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry. Trump named Landry as his special envoy to Greenland last year. The White House gave no answer when asked what exactly led to sending the ship now. Greenland already gives free healthcare to all its people.
Trump has long called Greenland important for U.S. national security. He points to its large mineral resources and its place in the Arctic. Climate change is opening new sea routes there and changing power balances in the far north.
Greenland has about 56,000 people. Most are Greenlandic Inuit. Everyone living there holds Danish citizenship, and the island remains an autonomous part of Denmark.
The U.S. Navy owns two hospital ships: USNS Comfort, based on the East Coast, and USNS Mercy, based on the West Coast. It is not clear which one Trump plans to send or when it might reach Greenland. Both ships are currently in a shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, for repairs, according to ship-tracking data. One report says the Comfort should finish its work in April.
The Defense Department and U.S. Northern Command pointed questions back to the White House.
Greenland leaders have always said the island is not for sale. They do not want to leave Denmark’s control. Denmark’s embassy in Washington did not comment on Trump’s post.
A Greenland activist named Orla Joelsen replied online with “no thanks.” She said Greenland’s people are healthy and strong thanks to their traditional foods, like seal blubber full of vitamins and nutrients. She told Trump to fix high healthcare costs in the United States instead.
Last month in Switzerland, Trump first threatened tariffs to pressure Greenland. He later dropped the threat. He said he would work toward a future deal on Greenland and the Arctic with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
European officials expect talks to cover placing U.S. forces at bases in Greenland. They also see more European steps to increase Arctic security. The U.S. might gain first rights to invest in Greenland’s minerals. The goal is to stop Russia and China from taking those resources.
(Source: TradingView/WSJ)
