Greenland prime minister says 'no thanks' to Trump's hospital ship


A person displays a Greenlandic flag, as people protest in front of the U.S. consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, January 22, 2026. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo

(Fixes formatting of advisory ⁠line; adds detail and quote from PM statement in ⁠paragraphs 3-7)

COPENHAGEN, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik ‌Nielsen said on Sunday "no thanks" to U.S. President Donald Trump's idea of sending a hospital ship to Greenland, a territory that Trump has repeatedly said ​he wishes to take over.

Trump said on ⁠Saturday on social media ⁠he was working with Louisiana Governor and special envoy to Greenland, ⁠Jeff ‌Landry, to send a hospital boat to Greenland.

"President Trump's idea of sending an American hospital ship here ⁠to Greenland has been noted. But we have ​a public healthcare ‌system where treatment is free for citizens. It is ⁠a deliberate ​choice," Nielsen said in a post on Facebook.

Nielsen said Greenland remained open to dialogue and cooperation, also with the U.S.

"But talk to ⁠us instead of just making more ​or less random outbursts on social media," he said.

Greenland, Denmark and the U.S. late last month launched diplomatic talks to resolve the ⁠crisis between the parties, following months of tension within the NATO defence alliance over Trump's threats against the Arctic territory.

Trump's post on the ship came hours after Denmark's Joint Arctic ​Command said it had evacuated a crew ⁠member who required urgent medical treatment from a U.S. submarine ​in Greenlandic waters, seven nautical miles ‌outside of Greenland's capital, Nuuk. It ​was unclear if the post had any connection to the evacuation.

(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, editing by Louise Rasmussen)

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