JD Vance and his wife are due to arrive in Greenland on Friday for a trip that provoked uproar – as Vladimir Putin warns that US threats to take over the island should be taken seriously.
The US vice president and his wife Usha are expected to arrive in Greenland at about 3.30pm GMT to visit America’s military base at Pituffik in the north of the Arctic island.
The itinerary has been stripped back. Mrs Vance had planned a solo visit to a popular dog-sled race on the island with national security adviser Mike Waltz – but the idea provoked anger as they had not been invited by authorities in either Greenland or Denmark.
Her husband then said he would be joining her for that trip, only for the itinerary to be changed once again to a one-day visit to the military post, following protests from Greenland and Denmark.
The trip comes after repeated assertions from Donald Trump that the US should take over Greenland, a territory which has been part of Denmark for 600 years.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is not surprised the US wants control of the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
Mr Putin, who after being largely shunned by the West over his invasion of Ukraine has held two phone calls with Mr Trump since the Republican’s inauguration in January, said America’s proposition shouldn’t be seen as “extravagant talk”.
Speaking at a policy forum in the Arctic port of Murmansk, he noted the US first considered plans to win control over Greenland in the 19th century, and then offered to buy it from Denmark after World War Two.
“It can look surprising only at first glance and it would be wrong to believe that this is some sort of extravagant talk by the current US administration,” Mr Putin said.
“It’s obvious that the United States will continue to systematically advance its geostrategic, military-political and economic interests in the Arctic.”
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He went on: “We won’t allow any infringement on our country’s sovereignty, reliably safeguard our national interests while supporting peace and stability in the polar region.”
While pledging to strengthen Russia’s military foothold in the Arctic, Mr Putin said that Moscow was holding the door open to broader international cooperation in the region.
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“The stronger our positions will be, the more significant the results will be and the broader opportunities we will have to launch international projects in the Arctic involving the countries that are friendly to us, and, possibly, Western countries if they show interest in joint work. I’m sure the time will come to launch such projects.”
