Trump’s Greenland Envoy Landry Arrives in Nuuk For 1st Trip to Island

WASHINGTON—In an exclusive interview with The Epoch Times, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, the United States’ special envoy to Greenland, described his plans for his inaugural trip to the Danish territory, scheduled for May 17 through May 20.

He said his trip will be confined to Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, where he arrived on May 17. According to Landry, it will center on the annual Future Greenland conference, a forum for discussing business opportunities on the world’s largest island.

Describing the visit as a trade mission, the special envoy said he hoped to explore mining, tourism, and seafood, as well as the possibility of an American health care initiative to address tuberculosis, hepatitis D, and other issues in Greenland’s small and scattered villages.

“This is basically a trip that gives us an opportunity to collect information on what Greenlanders view as opportunities,” he said.

Landry said he will be joined by the United States’ ambassador to Denmark, Ken Howery, as well as the State Department’s Ali Motamedi.

“The ambassador’s team has been working closely with the Future Greenland conference and the stakeholders that are in Greenland, trying to identify those industries or stakeholders who want to expand opportunities with the United States, and those are the meetings that we’re going to be having,” Landry said.

The visit comes as the United States opens new consulate office space in the territory amid President Donald Trump’s interest in acquiring it.

Early in 2026, Pele Broberg, the leader of Greenland’s strongly pro-independence Naleraq Party, advocated direct talks between the United States and Greenland that do not include Danish officials.

Landry said Howery’s presence “lends itself to visiting with a multitude of Greenland officials,” although he did not specify additional names.

A participant list for Future Greenland names Landry, Howery, Motamedi, and others associated with the United States, alongside Danish and Greenlandic officials.

The United States, Denmark, and Greenland have been holding high-level negotiations over the future of the territory’s security.

The United States is reported to have proposed opening three military bases in southern Greenland. The country already maintains Pituffik Space Base, located in northern Greenland, less than 1,000 miles from the North Pole.

Landry said he has not been a part of that security dialogue.

“I do think that that increased military presence in Greenland is actually a must for the safety of not only Greenland but for the Western Hemisphere as well,” he said.

At a February conference in France, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said national security is the United States’ primary motivation as it focuses on Greenland.

When asked about the island’s rare earths and other minerals in light of American interests, he said: “Mining or energy development could bring great economic opportunity to Greenland. It’s very expensive to mine in a remote territory with not a lot of infrastructure, with a lot of ice.

“There’s certainly far more attractive places to mine for rare earths.”

He said rare earth-related development “might make life better for Greenlanders,” but that “[the U.S.] interest is national security.”

Landry said he hopes to assess the logistical challenges of mining in conversation with Greenlanders.

The Louisiana governor described mining as “one of the things that [has been] done well in Louisiana.”

He also touched on Greenland’s fisheries industry, an economic mainstay, and its growing tourism sector.

Reindeer hunting and seasonal fly-fishing are among Greenland’s draws for foreign tourists.

Landry drew parallels to his home state, where hunting, fishing, and seafood are economic drivers.

“I’m always kind of selfish to Louisiana, but I’ve seen this as some great opportunities,” he said.

Landry said that after Trump spoke of sending a hospital boat to Greenland, he had been “inundated with medical providers and professionals that say, ‘Hey, look, we’d love to go do a mission trip there and see if we can work inside the villages.’”

He underscored why Greenland matters to the president.

“Greenland is in the Western Hemisphere,” Landry said. “The president is extremely serious about ensuring that those countries inside the Western Hemisphere have a much broader, robust relationship with the United States, and are not working actively for our enemies.”