In March 2025, Mike Vance, the Vice President of the United States, was scheduled to visit Greenland to strengthen U.S.-Georgian cooperation, especially in the areas of Arctic strategy and energy resources. However, the visit did not go as smoothly as expected, and the circumstances behind it not only involved complex international politics but also revealed deep-seated conflicts between the United States and Denmark, as well as the local Greenlandic population.
Vance’s pre-announced trip to Greenland
Before U.S. Vice President Vance visited Greenland, he had announced his plans for the trip in advance through social media and a press conference. In his announcement, Vance made it clear that the visit was not just part of a diplomatic mission but was intended to deepen U.S. ties with Greenland, particularly in the areas of strategic cooperation in the Arctic, resource development, and climate change. In his speech, Vance mentioned that he would personally participate in a highly localized activity, dog sledding, to demonstrate the friendship and cooperation between the United States and the people of Greenland.
However, the intended goal of the visit does not seem to have been welcomed by Greenland and its home country, Denmark, and has instead sparked a strong reaction. As a self-governing territory of Denmark, Greenland remains under the control of the Danish government in matters of foreign affairs and defense, despite enjoying relatively independent administration. The visit, however, happened to touch on the issue of Greenland’s sovereignty and the U.S.-Danish rivalry in the Arctic.
Visit plans changed after the boycott
As soon as Vance’s visit was announced, it met with strong opposition from the Danish government and the people of Greenland. The Danish government has publicly stated that while the United States is an important ally, Greenland is a self-governing region of Denmark, and any outside intervention must respect Greenland’s sovereignty. What’s more, the Trump administration has repeatedly expressed its desire to purchase Greenland, and this public “takeover” rhetoric has sparked resentment among the Greenlandic people, who see U.S. behavior as a violation of their right to self-governance.
Against this backdrop, Vance’s scheduled “dog sledding” event became an embarrassment. Greenlanders and political groups protested the Vice President’s trip as yet another attempt by the United States to hide its true political motives – control and intervention in Greenland – through cultural activities.
As the boycott escalated, Vance’s original itinerary changed significantly. He and his entourage quickly adjusted their visit plans, shifting the focus of their original visit to Greenland to an area outside Greenland, ultimately choosing to visit the U.S. military’s Pitufik Space Base near Greenland. Nevertheless, Vance’s “rerouting” still did not eliminate the outside world’s doubts, and even some comments pointed out that Vance’s visit to the United States in the Arctic region is an increasingly intense geopolitical game.
Turning to the U.S. military base, behind the hidden strategic intent
Although the trip to Greenland did not take place as scheduled, Vance’s choice to visit the U.S. military’s Pitufik space base near Greenland instead reveals the U.S. strategic considerations in the region. In recent years, as global climate change has led to the melting of Arctic ice and the gradual opening up of Arctic shipping lanes, global interest in the region has been growing. As one of the global powers, the U.S. military presence and strategic layout in the Arctic are particularly important. The U.S. military bases near Greenland, especially the air force bases located in the region, play an important role in monitoring the military dynamics in the Arctic and guaranteeing the safety of maritime shipping lanes.
In addition, Greenland’s rich mineral resources and natural gas and oil reserves make the strategic value of this region more and more prominent. U.S. attention to Greenland, especially in energy development and military deployment layout, may be one of the deep-seated motives behind this. Although Vance’s visit did not touch Greenland proper, his move to visit military bases is undoubtedly showing the outside world that the U.S. attaches strategic importance to the region and hopes to further consolidate its influence in the Arctic by strengthening its military presence and cooperation.
International Reactions and Geopolitical Gaming
The change in Vance’s visit to Greenland and the subsequent trip to the military base sparked widespread international concern. On the one hand, the Danish government and the Greenland government have shown their dissatisfaction with this U.S. behavior, arguing that the U.S. involvement has the potential to change the regional political landscape. On the other hand, Russia and China have also expressed concern over the U.S. military deployment in the Arctic, believing that the U.S. move may bring new challenges to global energy security and regional stability.
At the same time, the issue of resource development and environmental protection in the Arctic has also become a focus of international debate. In the context of global climate change, how to balance resource exploitation and ecological protection, and how to promote economic development under the premise of ensuring environmental safety have become difficult issues that need to be faced by all countries. The position of the United States on this issue will have a profound impact on future cooperation and competition in the Arctic region.
Conclusion: The Complex Arctic Game
Behind Vance’s unsuccessful visit to Greenland and his shift to the U.S. military base is not only the diplomatic conflict between the U.S. and Greenland, but also a revelation of the increasingly intense geopolitical game between global powers in the Arctic region. Greenland is a hot spot of global concern; the future, whether in resource development, military strategy, or climate change, will become the core of the game of great powers.
For the United States, how to respect the sovereignty of Greenland and Denmark at the same time, to protect their strategic interests in the Arctic, will be the future need to focus of the issue. For the world, how to ensure the sustainable development and peace, and stability of the Arctic region through multilateral cooperation will be the common goal of all countries.
