US President Donald Trump has cancelled a state visit to Denmark after the nations prime minister said Greenland was not for sale to the US. Denmark is a very special country with incredible people, but based on Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s comments, that she would have no interest in discussing the purchase of Greenland, I will be postponing our meeting scheduled in two weeks for another time.... — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 20, 2019 The president was scheduled to visit on 2 September, at the invitation of Denmarks Queen Margrethe II. Then last week Mr Trump suggested the US was interested in buying Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory. Danish PM Mette Frederiksen described the suggestion as absurd and said she hoped Mr Trump was not being serious. Ms Frederiksen is due to give a statement later on Wednesday. While praising Denmark as a very special country, Mr Trump said in a tweet on Tuesday that his planned visit would no longer go ahead because Ms Frederiksen had no interest in discussing the purchase of Greenland. The cancellation was confirmed by a White House spokesman. The Danish royal house also confirmed it had been informed of the cancellation. The houses head of communications, Lene Balleby, told the BBC it was definitely a surprise. Just hours before Mr Trump announced the cancellation, the US ambassador to Denmark, Carla Sands, tweeted: Denmark is ready for the POTUS @realDonaldTrump visit! Partner, ally, friend. Mr Trump had earlier confirmed reports that he was interested in buying Greenland. When asked on Sunday if he would consider trading a US territory for the island, he replied: Well, a lot of things could be done. Essentially its a large real estate deal, he said. Then, on Monday, the US president posted an image on social media showing a tall golden skyscraper among the homes of a small village on the island.
