On Wednesday, Vice President J.D. Vance said he will be joining his wife Usha Vance on a non-diplomatic trip to Greenland on Friday. The Second Lady is leading the trip.
The Vances won’t be alone on this trip as they will be joined by senior officials in the Trump Administration. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Energy Secretary Chris Wright will be joining the Second Family. The trip which is dubbed as part of a cultural education tour for the Second Lady and her son, comes at a time of heightened diplomatic tension between the outer most northern region in North America.
President Trump wants Greenland, that much, he has made it clear. And now, a group of senior officials in his administration are suddenly embarking on a trip to this territory? Coincidences in the political world don’t just happen.
Th VP later spoke, highlighting the main reason for embarking on this trip citing security concerns as high on the agenda.
“I’m going to visit some of our Guardians in the Space Force on the northwest coast of Greenland and also to just check out what’s going on with the security there of Greenland.”
“Unfortunately, leaders in both America and in Denmark ignored Greenland for far too long and that’s been bad for Greenland and it’s also been bad for the security of the entire world.”
He then added, ”We think we can take things in a different direction.”
Meanwhile, leaders in Denmark have criticized the trip, saying it puts a lot of pressure on the small Danish territory in the Arctic.
Greenland is a resource and mineral-rich semi-autonomous territory which is part of the Scandinavian nation of Denmark. It is of strategic importance to the US mainly because of its location.
The US military already has an established base there and holds a commanding presence including a ballistic missile early warning system. The Thule Air Base is America’s northernmost military base located at some 750 miles above the Arctic Circle.
This developing story has brought to the forefront the sensitive role of international relations and diplomacy particularly as in this case, the delicate diplomatic manoeuvres between and among nations.
For instance, U.S. officials travelling to Greenland without official invitation from the territory are doing so outside the most basic diplomatic protocol. In so doing, their presence thus becomes a diplomatic taboo but still, both the Danes and Greenlanders cannot do anything or stop the party if it chooses to visit the U.S. military Air Base because of a post-WWII agreement between the US and Denmark. A diplomatic balance is struck.
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