Denmark Says Greenland Healthcare Is Adequate After Trump Hospital Ship Comment
Denmark’s Defence Minister has stated that Greenland does not require medical assistance from foreign countries, responding to claims that the United States was planning to send a hospital ship to the Arctic territory.
Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said Greenland’s population already has access to reliable healthcare services, either within the territory or through specialised treatment facilities in Denmark.
“The Greenlandic population receives the medical care they need. When specialised treatment is required, patients are either treated locally or transferred to Denmark,” Poulsen said in a media interview, stressing that there was no need for a separate international healthcare mission.
Healthcare services in Greenland and Denmark are publicly funded and free at the point of use. The territory operates five regional hospitals across its expansive Arctic region, with the hospital in Nuuk serving as the primary medical centre for patients across the island.
The statement comes after Donald Trump claimed on his social media platform that the United States was preparing to send a “great hospital boat” to Greenland to provide care for residents he suggested were underserved, writing, “It’s on the way!!!” without providing additional details.
Trump has repeatedly argued that U.S. control over Greenland is strategically important for American national security. Although he later moderated earlier remarks suggesting possible territorial acquisition, he has since pursued a framework agreement with Mark Rutte aimed at expanding U.S. strategic influence in the region.
Poulsen said he was unaware of any imminent deployment of an American hospital vessel and described the ongoing public exchanges over Greenland as reflecting what he termed a new dynamic in international diplomacy.
In a related development, the Danish Arctic Command confirmed that it had evacuated a crew member from a U.S. submarine operating near Nuuk after the sailor requested urgent medical attention.
