Danish king arrives in Greenland as Trump eyes strategic Arctic island

Denmarks King Frederik, left, and Greenland's Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, right, arrive in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, April 29, 2025. (Ida Marie Odgaard/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

NUUK, Greenland — King Frederik X of Denmark arrived in Greenland on Tuesday, kicking off a visit to the semiautonomous territory that U.S. President Donald Trump wants to annex because of its strategic Arctic location.

Frederik’s trip to the island’s capital city of Nuuk follows the new Greenlandic prime minister’s visit to Copenhagen earlier this week. Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen accompanied the monarch to Nuuk.

The king wore a jacket with emblems of the Danish and Greenlandic flags as he disembarked from the plane to applause.

Danish broadcaster TV2 asked Frederik about his mission during his trip. He said he wasn’t on a mission, and he was happy to be there.

Nielsen also told reporters that the Danish royal house’s love for Greenland can’t be questioned. He added that the monarch is well-liked on the island.

The flight was originally scheduled for Monday, but was delayed because of poor weather conditions.

Frederik is expected to meet with the new Greenlandic government this week, as well as attend a traditional “kaffemik,” or coffee break, to meet with Greenlanders, the royal house said.

Weather forced him to cancel the anticipated trip on Wednesday to Station Nord, the island’s northernmost military and scientific station, plus forgo a meeting with an elite dogsled unit of the Danish special forces that patrols the remotest parts of northeast Greenland.

The monarch visited Greenland last July, months after he took the Danish throne upon his mother’s abdication.

This week’s Greenland trip comes after U.S. Vice President JD Vance visited a remote U.S. military base on the island and accused Denmark of underinvesting in it. Trump seeks control of mineral-rich Greenland, saying it’s crucial for U.S. security. Trump hasn’t ruled out taking the island by military force, even though Denmark is a NATO ally of the United States.

The Associated Press