President-elect Donald Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. was expected to visit Greenland on Tuesday, weeks after his father expressed a desire for the U.S. to gain control of the autonomous Danish territory. The visit, confirmed by a Greenland official to CBS News, also comes a day after Mr. Trump suggested the people of the vast region were “MAGA,” in a post on social media.
“The visit of Donald Trump Jr. is a private visit and that is being respected by Naalakkersuisut — the Government of Greenland. Therefore, there will also not be reactions to the visit,” Mininnguaq Kleist, Greenland’s permanent secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told CBS News. “Our country is open for visits, and visitors are welcome in our beautiful country.”
Reuters, citing a source familiar with the trip, reported that Trump Jr. was planning to shoot content for a podcast, and that he would only be visiting for one day.
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On Monday, Trump said in a social media post that he was, “hearing that the people of Greenland are ‘MAGA.’ My son, Don Jr, and various representatives, will be traveling there to visit some of the most magnificent areas and sights. Greenland is an incredible place, and the people will benefit tremendously if, and when, it becomes part of our Nation. We will protect it, and cherish it, from a very vicious outside World. MAKE GREENLAND GREAT AGAIN!”
Greenland has a population of about 57,000 and is a fully autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. It has oil, natural gas and mineral resources, but its economy is reliant on subsidies from Denmark and from fishing.
President-elect Trump had expressed interest in buying Greenland during his first term in office, though the idea was quickly rebuffed by Danish authorities.Â
Two weeks ago, Trump said on social media that, “for purposes of National Security and Freedom throughout the World, the United States of America feels that the ownership and control of Greenland is an absolute necessity.”
Greenland’s government has twice rebuffed assertions of interest in the territory by Mr. Trump, with Prime Minister Mute Egede saying just before Christmas that “Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale.”
Last week, Egede gave a New Year’s speech pushing for Greenland to remove “the shackles of colonialism” and gain full independence from Denmark.Â
“It is about time that we ourselves take a step and shape our future, also with regard to who we will cooperate closely with, and who our trading partners will be,” Egede said.
One Greenlandic lawmaker in Denmark’s parliament, Aaja Chemnitz, said Trump’s interest should be dismissed, Reuters reported.
“I don’t want to be a pawn in Trump’s hot dreams of expanding his empire to include our country,” Chemnitz said.