Trump’s Greenland envoy to attend Nuuk business conference amid sovereignty tensions

Donald Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, will attend a business conference in Nuuk next month alongside the US ambassador to Denmark, according to plans confirmed by organisers, Danish broadcaster DR reports.

Landry, appointed by Trump in December 2025 as his special representative for Greenland, has previously stated his goal is to make the territory part of the United States. His participation in Future Greenland, an economic conference on 19–20 May, marks his first visit to the island since his controversial appointment.

Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard, a senior researcher in US foreign policy at the Danish Institute for International Studies, described Landry as embodying Trump’s “maximalist ambitions to detach Greenland from Denmark.” Unlike the US ambassador, who adopts a diplomatic approach, Søndergaard said Landry represents the administration’s more assertive stance on territorial control.

“Landry aligns with Trump’s personal ambitions—ownership and control in some form,” Søndergaard told DR, adding that the envoy’s polarising rhetoric and lack of Arctic policy experience would likely be met with scepticism in Greenland. “He won’t be welcomed with open arms, but his task is clear: to advance Trump’s goal of making Greenland part of the US.”

US Ambassador to Denmark Ken Howery, who visited Greenland in December for annual trilateral talks on trade, defence, and resource cooperation, will also attend the conference. Søndergaard noted that the dual presence signals a “two-track strategy,” with Howery focusing on collaboration while Landry pushes a more confrontational agenda.

Organisers Grønlands Erhverv clarified that Landry was not officially invited but registered as a paying attendee. Troy J. Bouffard, director of the Center for Arctic Security and Resilience at the University of Alaska, said the visit—though informal—holds symbolic weight. “It gives Landry firsthand exposure to Greenland’s economic priorities, from critical minerals to infrastructure needs,” Bouffard told DR, emphasising the territory’s strategic importance to the US.

Landry had previously planned to visit Greenland in March for the traditional dogsled race in Qasigiannguit, but the trip was cancelled. DR has sought comment from Landry on his objectives for the Nuuk conference.