Analyst: Trump's hospital ship is a media stunt

With his announcement to send a "fantastic hospital ship" to Greenland, the US president is trying to divert attention from the fact that an American submarine had to get help from Denmark and Greenland this weekend.

This is the assessment of former chief analyst in the Danish Defense Intelligence Agency Jacob Kaarsbo to TV2, where he calls Trump's announcement a media stunt.

According to Jacob Kaarsbo, the episode about the need for help for a crew member on an American submarine off Nuuk is unpleasant for Trump:

- It is an unpleasant situation for Trump, which shows that he needs us and his allies, and it is a picture that the Americans cannot manage on their own in Greenland, Jacob Kaarsbo tells TV2.

It was Saturday that the Arctic Command evacuated a crew member from the American submarine, which was off Nuuk. According to the Arctic Command, the crew member needed urgent medical treatment.

As far as is known, the US special envoy to Greenland, Jeff Landry, has not yet visited Greenland.

Landry has, however, had visits from Greenland by, among others, the well-known Trump supporter Jørgen Boassen. This is shown in a post on X from February 15.

In the post, Landry writes:

- Lovely to host some of the wonderful Greenlandic people for the Endymion ballet! We show them our fantastic culture of hospitality!

He has attached a picture of himself standing with Jørgen Boassen holding Erfalasorput.

Landry is on the field these days, defending a proposal from Donald Trump to send a "fantastic hospital ship" to Greenland. Landry claims to have spoken to many Greenlanders, who have pointed out that the healthcare system is a major problem.

The US has apparently not sent any official request to Greenland offering help. Chairman of Naalakkersusiut, Jens-Frederik Nielsen (D), has made it clear that Greenland has its own healthcare system with free treatment for its citizens.

Member of Parliament Aaja Chemnitz is now reacting to President Donald Trump's announcement that the US will send a hospital ship to Greenland.

- Another day. Another crazy news. Trump will send an unmaintained hospital ship to Greenland. It seems quite desperate and does not contribute to the permanent and sustained boost to the healthcare system that we need, she writes and continues:

- I met Tom Dans, Trump's man in the Arctic, and he talked about how we had tuberculosis problems in Greenland, so I can understand where their thinking comes from and the intention may be good in principle, but the solution is off the mark.

Aaja Chemnitz acknowledges that there are challenges within the healthcare sector in Greenland but points out that the challenges are being addressed. For example, 35 million DKK more has been allocated annually since the last parliamentary election, and this year an extra 185 million DKK has been allocated for treatment for Greenlanders who need treatment in Denmark.

- Our healthcare system is deeply challenged. Also more than what you see in Denmark. And this can best be solved with Denmark, as one of the richest and most well-educated countries in, for example, the healthcare sector. Not the USA, which has its own problems with healthcare.

- This requires closer and more committed efforts from Denmark in the health sector in Greenland, writes Aaja Chemnitz.

During the coffee break in Katuaq, Chairman of the Greenland Government Jens-Frederik Nielsen gives a short interview to the press present,

He says, among other things, that he is very happy about the King's visit:

- He is popular and loved by the citizens in this country, and he is a very unifying figure. This is proven every time he is here.

- I am happy that he wanted to come, says Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

He is also asked about the visit's signal to the USA and Donald Trump:

- We have been in this situation for a long time. I think the most important thing is that citizens of Greenland can feel the solidarity with the royal family, which proves to be very strong every year.

There is applause and cheers when King Frederik arrives at the coffee table in a packed Katuaq on Wednesday afternoon.

During the coffee table, the citizens present have the opportunity to greet the king, and this has drawn many from their homes and to the coffee table in the cultural center.

Two of the guests, Sussi Høegh from Ilulissat and Elisabeth Thorin from Qasigiannguit, are already in Katuaq. They hope to see the king up close.

- It is important for us to see the king in our town. That is why we are here as guests in the coffee shop, says Sussi Høegh and continues:

- I am not very good at Danish. But I would tell him that one of our classmates in the pedagogical school, Frederik, would very much like to greet him, says Sussi Høegh.

Sit opposite Elisabeth Thorin:

- I would say to him in Greenlandic, "tikilluarit", (welcome, ed.). That is it, says Elisabeth Thorin.

Before 3:45 p.m. Katuaq had to lock its doors because there are no more seats inside Katuaq.

The final preparations for the coffee party in Katuaq are almost complete.

Katuaq Director Ivaaq Kriegel informs Sermitsiaq that the cultural center expects 500 guests this afternoon:

- We have baked cakes for about 500 guests. And we expect the number of guests to be about 500. When the guests start arriving, we will get busy brewing fresh coffee, says Ivaaq Kriegel.

The director informs that Katuaq's doors will open to guests as early as 3:00 p.m. King Frederik is expected to arrive at 3:45 p.m.

- We know that the king would very much like to greet guests who come here, says Ivaaq Kriegel.

A little after 3 p.m., a number of citizens have already arrived in Katuaq to be ready for the coffee party, which begins at 3:45 p.m.

The next item on the agenda is a visit to the Danish Armed Forces ship Vædderen in the harbor in Nuuk.

Here, students from the Arctic Basic Education greet the King, as well as showing off equipment to King Frederik and Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

Due to the coffee party in connection with the King's visit to Nuuk, the police will be heavily present around Katuaq.

The Greenland Police writes on their Facebook page.

- In addition, increased traffic is expected around Katuaq between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM in connection with the planned coffee break, it says.

Citizens are urged to show consideration for each other in traffic in the area.

King Frederik visits Royal Greenland in Nuuk, where he is given a tour of the company's factory.

Sermitsiaq's reporter reports from the scene that the work of filleting fish at the factory continues while the king is visiting.

King Frederik and his entourage are appropriately dressed in plastic suits and masks for reasons of hygiene during the tour.

During the tour, the King greets one of the employees and is given a brief explanation of the various machines, while he listens with interest.

The Chairman of the Government of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, is also on the tour.

Helga Rina Kristoffersen is 18 years old and is in the first year of GUX.

She is one of those who sang for King Frederik during his visit to her educational institution on Wednesday:

- I think it is great that he comes to visit us. However, I will not accompany him on his further visits as I will be studying myself, she tells Sermitsiaq.

GUX students have chosen to sing "Nuna asiilasooq" for the king during his visit on Wednesday.

Here the students were able to meet King Frederik, who is visiting GUX during his visit to Nuuk.

The next item on the day is a visit and tour of Royal Greenland, after which the trip continues to the inspection ship Vædderen, where King Frederik will meet students at the Arctic Basic Education.

The day ends with a coffee meeting in Katuaq at 3:45 p.m.

King Frederik has finished lunch and says a few words to the press as he comes out of Hans Egede's House:

- It is a great joy for me to be back in Greenland, he says and continues:

- The well-being of the Greenlandic people is very important to me. It always has been, and it always will be, says the king.

Here he is certainly referring to the pressure that the population has been under from the USA. The superpower has very directly expressed its desire to take over Greenland.

King Frederik has previously stated that the situation in Greenland has affected both him and Queen Mary very much.

After lunch, King Frederik will go on to GUX:

- My program is now getting started, and I am looking forward to walking up to the high school, where I will meet the youth and talk to them a little about how they see their country right now.

Stina Jensen, 75, is standing at Hans Egede's House and has just seen King Frederik enter the house where he is going to have lunch.

Stina Jensen is from the older generation who cares a lot about the royal family:

- I was touched to the core. Seeing him is like getting warmth in my body. I am very touched by his visit, especially in this time when we have experienced difficult things from the outside.

- I've looked through the entire program and will follow the king all day. Of course I'll also go to the coffee break, she says.

King Frederik has been driven from the airport and arrived for a visit to the Danish Ombudsman Julie Præst Wilche.

On the way, the King has greeted children from the Mikisoq kindergarten.

Sermitsiaq's reporter reports that quite a few citizens were present, and of course also a certain security presence in the form of police.

Gerda Petersen from Nuuk is one of the citizens who is at the airport to welcome the king.

- I am very happy that he is now coming to visit us. It is important for the country that the king is coming in such a difficult time, she told Sermitsiaq.

A plane carrying King Frederik has now landed at Nuuk Airport, and the King has greeted the Chairman of the Greenland Government, Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

When the King stepped off the plane, cheers could be heard from the citizens who were standing on the edge of the airport area.

A few citizens have turned out to see King Frederik land in Nuuk.

One of them is Hansine Lyberth, and she tells Sermitsiaq that she follows King Frederik closely for a special reason:

- I was born in 1968, the same year as the King. So it is important for me to follow the King.

- I am on holiday in Nuuk, and therefore I have taken the opportunity to see him arrive and follow him on his visit. I am also going home to Maniitsoq tomorrow. I will use today to follow along and go to a coffee party in Katuaq in the afternoon, says Hansine Lyberth to Sermitsiaq.

At 11:00, Greenlandic and Danish media are ready to cover King Frederik's arrival in Nuuk.

Arrival is expected at 11:30, where Chairman of Naalakkersuisut Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Chairman of Inatsisartut Kim Kielsen will receive him.

Sermitsiaq is following today's royal visit to Nuuk, where King Frederik is going to a coffee party in Katuaq, among other things.

King Frederik will act as a unifying figure for the entire Kingdom of Denmark when he arrives in Nuuk on Wednesday morning at 11:30.

That is the assessment of historian Emma Rønberg Paaske.

This is the King's third visit to Greenland since he became regent just over two years ago in January 2024.

The frequent visits to Greenland come as a result of the unrest that US President Donald Trump has created among the population with his repeated statements about control over Greenland.

- It is of course important that the king, who is also the king of Greenland, steps up and ensures that everything is as it should be and instills hope in a turbulent time, says Emma Rønberg Paaske.

The royals are limited in terms of acting or expressing themselves politically, as the Danish monarchy is constitutional and therefore does not have real power in the traditional sense.

- But he has what can be called soft power, which means that he can step up and be a symbol of our cohesion in the realm, says Emma Paaske.

The king himself has not directly linked the visit to Greenland with the American interest in the island and Trump's statements, which is of course related to the fact that the king cannot or should not carry out political actions on his own.

But when the king announced his trip to Greenland, it was said that he and Queen Mary have been following the developments, where Greenland has been under pressure from the other side of the Atlantic.

- We feel very much for the Greenlandic people, and what has happened in Greenland in recent weeks has touched us a lot, he said during a press conference on a royal state visit to Lithuania at the end of January.

The relationship between the Greenlanders and the Danish royal family goes back to 1921, when Christian X traveled there on the first official trip, after which successive rulers have had a close relationship with the island.

But King Frederik's is particularly strong.

He has traveled the country extensively both as a child and as an adult. Both in official contexts as Crown Prince and King, as a naval officer in 1996 on the inspection ship "Vædderen", and not least when he completed the 2500-kilometer sledge journey "Expedition Sirus 2000".

According to Emma Rønberg Paaske, he is the regent who has had the closest ties with the Greenlanders.

- It is certainly an advantage, because he knows the country and the Greenlandic people, she says, emphasizing that he is enormously loved by the Greenlandic population.

The Greenlanders have also expressed that they wanted a visit and more attention from the King at this time, she says.

- So of course he will come.

/ritzau/