Vance tours U.S. base in Greenland as Trump talks up takeover of territory : NPR

Vice President JD (at right), seated next to second lady Usha Vance, eats at a table with soldiers at the U.S. military’s Pituffik Space Base on March 28 in Pituffik, Greenland.

Jim Watson/Pool/Getty Images)

hide caption

toggle caption

Jim Watson/Pool/Getty Images)

Vice President JD Vance landed at a U.S. military base in Greenland on Friday, amid concerns that the U.S. is seeking to seize control of the Danish island territory.

“The president is really interested in Arctic security, as you all know, and it’s only going to get bigger over the coming decades,” Vance told U.S. troops at Pituffik Space Base.

Vance made the trip to the Danish territory with the second lady, Usha Vance, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and other leaders.

It was actually a scaled-down itinerary , after Greenland and Denmark leaders criticized the U.S. for not having been informed. The original plans called for a solo visit by the second lady to the capital city, Nuuk, for a cultural tour and to attend a dogsled race.

President Trump has repeatedly expressed interest in acquiring the territory. On Friday he explained that because Chinese and Russian warships use Greenland’s waterways, the island is a key for U.S. national security.

“We need Greenland, very importantly, for international security, we have to have Greenland. It’s not a question of, Do you think we can do without it? We can’t,” Trump said Friday. “We’re not relying on Denmark or anybody else to take care of that situation.”

Polls show that most Greenlanders oppose the idea of becoming part of the United States. It also sparked some of the island’s largest protests, with angry Greenlanders holding “Yankees Go Home” signs and wearing “Make America Go Away” caps. Greenland and Denmark have both said that Greenland is not for sale.

This story will be updated.