Denmark's king to visit Greenland amid Trump crisis

Denmark's King Frederik said on Thursday he will visit Greenland from February 18 to 20 as the Nordic nation asserts its sovereignty over the Arctic island in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's repeated demands for control.

Trump says the United States needs Greenland for national security but last week backed away from threats to seize the island by force and withdrew proposed tariffs on countries that oppose annexation. He instead launched diplomatic talks seeking greater access, though Washington already has broad permission to station troops there.

The king, who last visited the autonomous territory in April 2025, said he hopes to give Greenlanders a morale boost at a difficult time.

"I sense that they are worried, and for me it's a pleasure to go and meet them," Frederik told reporters while on a visit to Lithuania.

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen says that if forced to choose between the U.S. and Denmark, Greenlanders would choose Denmark.

The island's government said on Wednesday it had launched a survey of the population's mental health situation at a time of extraordinary pressure.

"The background for this is the current foreign policy situation, where statements from the U.S. president about taking over Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland) have created insecurity and concern among many people," the government said in a statement.

-Anna Ringstrom/Reuters