President Donald Trump announced that he plans to send a US hospital ship to Greenland, claiming he is sending it because Greenlanders are not receiving adequate medical care.

“In collaboration with the fantastic Governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, we are sending a large hospital ship to Greenland to care for the many people who are sick and not receiving care there. It is on its way!!!” he wrote on a saturday Social Truth Posting next to what appeared to be an illustration of the USNS Mercy, the lead hospital ship in non-commissioned service with the US Navy.

In December, Trump named Landry his special envoy to Greenland.

Trump’s post came hours after Denmark’s military said its Arctic commando forces evacuated a crew member from a US submarine in Greenland waters to receive urgent medical treatment. It is unclear whether Trump’s post had any connection to the evacuation. He did not clarify whether Greenland requested additional medical assistance or why they would need it.

On Sunday, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said “no thanks” to Trump’s plan to send the ship to Greenland on a post on facebook.

Greenland and Denmark offer free health care to their residents, funded by taxes.

“President Trump’s idea to send an American hospital ship to Greenland has been noted. But we have a public health system where treatment is free for citizens. It is a deliberate choice,” Nielsen wrote.

He added: “But talk to us instead of just making more or less random outbursts on social media.”

Danish Deputy Prime Minister Troels Lund Poulsen also dismissed Trump’s accusation that Greenlanders are not getting the health care they need.

“The Greenlandic population receives the health care they need,” he told Danish broadcaster DR. according to The Guardian. “They get it in Greenland or, if they need specialized treatment, they get it in Denmark. So it’s not like there’s a need for a special health initiative in Greenland.”

President Donald Trump first raised the idea of ​​acquiring Greenland in 2019, but renewed his push during his second presidential term.
President Donald Trump first raised the idea of ​​acquiring Greenland in 2019, but renewed his push during his second presidential term.

via News

“Trump tweets constantly about Greenland. So this is certainly an expression of the new normal that has taken hold in international politics,” Poulsen added.

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also weighed in and defended the country’s health care system in a Facebook post on Sunday, writing that she was “happy to live in a country where there is free and equal access to health care for everyone. Where it is not insurance and wealth that determine whether you receive the right treatment,” according to The News.

Trump has repeatedly reiterated his desire to acquire Greenland in recent months, citing that we need the Danish autonomous territory for “national security.”

The discussion has sparked widespread pushback from European leaders and allies, and subsequently jeopardized the White House’s relationship with its European NATO allies, particularly after Trump threatened last month to punish countries that do not support his decision to take control of Greenland with tariffs.

Trump announced what he called the framework for an agreement with NATO on Greenland late last month, even though NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte publicly insisted that Greenland was never mentioned in his conversation with Trump.

Frederiksen also poured cold water on a leaked White House claim that the deal would give the United States ownership of “small areas of land” in Greenland for military purposes.