President Donald Trump said the US is sending a hospital ship to Greenland. Denmark responded that Greenlanders are not in need of additional medical assistance.
“Working with the fantastic Governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, we are going to send a great hospital boat to Greenland to take care of the many people who are sick, and not being taken care of there,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday.
On Sunday, Denmark explained its colony was not in need of additional medical care support. “The Greenlandic population receives the healthcare it needs.” Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen continued, “They receive it either in Greenland, or, if they require specialised treatment, they receive it in Denmark. So it’s not as if there’s a need for a special healthcare initiative in Greenland.”
The Greenland government also rejected the assistance. “It’s a no thank you from here,” Greenland’s Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said in a statement. “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’s unclear why Trump elected to dispatch one of America’s two hospital ships to Greenland. On Saturday, a US submariner was evacuated from Greenland and required immediate medical attention.
Lt. Col. Daniel Davis explained that the announcement could be cover to get the hospital ship closer to Europe to receive American casualties from a conflict with Iran. “Looking at a map, one imagines this hospital ship will pass Greenland and continue to Europe – in case there are large numbers of American casualties that exceeds our European facilities,” he wrote on X. “The Mercy definitely isn’t for Greenlanders who have no medical emergencies necessitating a floating hospital.”
Looking at a map, one imagines this hospital ship will pass Greenland and continue to Europe – in case there are large numbers of American casualties that exceeds our European facilities…. Hope I’m wrong, but the Mercy definitely isn’t for Greenlanders who have no medical… https://t.co/SPBQwGbwnM
— Daniel Davis Deep Dive (@DanielLDavis1) February 22, 2026
