Donald Trump Jr. arrives in Greenland after his father said the U.S. should own the Danish territory [View all]

Source: CTV

The eldest son of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump arrived in Greenland on Tuesday for a private visit that has heightened speculation that the incoming U.S. administration could seek to take control of the Danish territory. The Danish state broadcaster reported that Donald Trump Jr.'s plane landed in Nuuk, the capital of the vast and icy territory that has some 57,000 residents. In a statement, Greenland's government said Trump Jr.'s visit would take place "as a private individual" and not as an official visit and that Greenlandic representatives would not meet with him. Mininguaq Kleist, permanent secretary for the Greenland foreign affairs department, told The Associated Press that authorities were informed that Trump Jr. would stay for about four to five hours.

There have been no requests from Trump Jr.'s delegation for official meetings with government representatives. The government of Greenland has also not requested meeting with the delegation, he said. The visit nonetheless has strong political overtones. It comes after president-elect Donald Trump recently voiced a desire -- which he also expressed in during his first presidency -- to acquire the vast Artic territory. Greenland is an autonomous territory that's part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

It also comes as Greenland's Prime Minister Mute Egede has been calling for independence from Denmark, saying in a New Year's speech that it would be a way for Greenland to free itself from its colonial past. But Egede has also said he has no interest in Greenland becoming part of the United States, insisting that the island is not for sale. Denmark's King Frederik X has been asserting his kingdom's rights to both Greenland as well as the Faroe Islands, a self-governing archipelago located between Iceland and Norway in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Last month, the king changed Denmark's coat of arms to include fields that represent Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Greenland is represented by an upright sitting silver bear with red tongue. The royal announcement noted that since 1194, the royal coat of arms "visually symbolized the legitimacy and sovereignty of the state and the monarch." "We are all united and each of us committed for the Kingdom of Denmark," Frederik said in his New Year's address, adding: "all the way to Greenland." Trump Jr. is in Greenland for a day trip to shoot video content for podcasting, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to speak publicly.

Read more: https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/donald-trump-jr-arrives-in-greenland-after-his-father-said-the-u-s-should-own-the-danish-territory-1.7167017