U.S. envoy pushes 'footprint' in Greenland, faces firm rejection

U.S. special envoy to Greenland Jeff Landry, who is also the Republican governor of Louisiana, concluded his first visit to the Arctic island this week by declaring that the United States should reinforce its presence in the territory, saying it was time for Washington to "put its footprint back" on the island. Landry, who was not officially invited and whose presence has been controversial, made the statement during an interview with the Greenlandic newspaper Sermitsiaq published Wednesday. The visit coincided with the inauguration of a new U.S. consulate building in Nuuk on Thursday, the first such permanent diplomatic facility since the 1950s, with protests planned against the opening. President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that the United States must control Greenland for national security reasons, claiming Beijing or Moscow could otherwise gain influence over the strategically vital island. Greenland sits on the shortest missile route between Russia and the United States, hosts untapped rare earth mineral deposits, and stands to gain significance as melting polar ice opens new shipping routes. According to recent reports, Washington is seeking to establish three new military bases in the island's south. The United States currently operates only one base in Greenland, the Pituffik Space Base in the north, down from the 17 installations and more than 10,000 troops it maintained during the Cold War. Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen met with Landry on Monday and described the talks as "constructive," while emphasizing that "there is no signal that anything has changed" regarding Greenland's determination to determine its own future. A 1951 defense pact, updated in 2004, already permits the United States to deploy additional forces and strengthen military installations in Greenland, provided Denmark and Greenland receive prior notice. While polls indicate most Greenlanders support eventual independence from Denmark, the government has no immediate plans for separation given the island's heavy economic dependence on Copenhagen. In January, leaders of five political parties in Greenland's parliament issued a joint statement affirming, "We do not want to be Americans, we do not want to be Danes; we want to be Greenlanders."