NOTE: The Consulate in Nuuk informs Sermitsiaq that Special Envoy to Greenland Jeff Landry will land on Sunday, and Ambassador Ken Howery will land in Nuuk on Monday.
The US Embassy in Denmark confirms that Ambassador Ken Howery and Special Envoy to Greenland Jeff Landry will travel to Greenland from May 18-21 to participate in the Future Greenland conference and to open the new consulate in Nuuk.
According to a press release from the embassy, the two will meet with a wide range of Greenlanders to listen and learn with the aim of increasing economic opportunities, strengthening personal relationships, and increasing understanding between the United States and Greenland.
Will offer more opportunities
"I look forward to visiting Greenland again and especially to opening our new consulate. Since 2020, when we reopened our consulate in Nuuk, we have expanded our relationships with the Greenlandic government, municipalities, and citizens across business, academia, and a range of sectors," Ambassador Howery said, continuing:
"We look forward to offering more opportunities for Americans and Greenlanders, and to using this new building as a place to build connections and collaboration between the United States and Greenland." This engagement will complement our long-standing and productive Arctic defense cooperation with the Kingdom of Denmark"
Unwelcome noise
The US visit to Greenland comes at a time when the Danish government is not yet in place. As a result, no representatives of the acting Danish government will be attending the conference.
Experts have called Jeff Landry's visit "unwelcome noise" and the chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee, IA's Pipaluk Lynge has expressed that "we must be aware of his intentions". Most recently, the chairman of Naalakkersuisut Jens-Frederik Nielsen (D) stated at a conference in Denmark that he does not yet know whether he will meet with Landry, but that if they are to meet, "there must be a clear agenda for what he wants".
