The itinerary for second lady Usha Vance‘s trip to Greenland was changed after people there refused to meet her, according to a journalist.

Vice President JD Vance and his wife are due to visit a U.S. military base on Greenland’s northwest coast on a trip that was scaled back from what the White House initially announced.

Newsweek contacted a spokesperson for Vance for comment via social media.

Why It Matters

It comes as relations between the U.S. and Denmark have soured over President Donald Trump‘s repeated suggestion that the U.S. should control Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark. He has said that annexing Greenland is needed for “international, for world security.”

An overwhelming majority of Greenlanders do not support Trump’s plan. In a poll, conducted between January 22 and January 26 for Danish newspaper Berlingske and Greenlandic paper Sermitsiaq, 85 percent of respondents said they did not support joining the U.S. Protests took place outside the U.S. consulate in Nuuk on March 15.

Usha Vance’s planned trip to Greenland sparked uproar from Greenlanders and Danes who were angry that the original itinerary was planned without their consultation. The government of Greenland said it had “not extended any invitations for any visits, neither private nor official.”

What to Know

Jesper Steinmetz, a correspondent for Danish channel TV 2, reported that U.S. representatives had gone around “knocking on one door after another” in recent days to ask if they would welcome a visit from Usha Vance.

“Everywhere, the answer was the same: no thank you,” Steinmetz said.

He said that was the reason the plans were changed.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters on Thursday that the change in plans is likely because U.S. officials have understood that the idea that Greenlanders are waiting with “open arms” and determined to become American citizens is a “false narrative.”

Newsweek previously reported that a travel agency in Nuuk initially accepted, then declined a visit from the second lady.

Henrik Skydsbjerg, the manager of Tupilak Travel, said the decision was based on fears that “it would turn out to be a MAGA event [which] we did not want to be part of.”

The White House had announced over the weekend that Usha Vance would visit Nuuk, historic sites and attend the Avannaata Qimussersu dogsled race in Sisimiut.

But on Tuesday, Vance announced that he would be joining his wife on the trip because he “didn’t want her to have all that fun by herself.” The White House said in a statement that the couple would only visit the Pituffik Space Base, where they would receive a briefing on Arctic security issues and meet with U.S. service members.

What People Are Saying

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told reporters on Thursday: “There are probably some people in the U.S. who have started to catch on that the narrative about a Greenlandic population standing with open arms and having a fierce ambition to become Americans is a false narrative—and that is a good thing. So instead you visit your own military installation in Greenland to get a briefing and I hope it will be a good briefing.”

Henrik Skydsbjerg, the manager of Tupilak Travel, told Newsweek: “The decision for the American delegation not to visit Nuuk and Sisimiut, but only the Pituffik Space Base was a great relief to almost all people here in Greenland. We are known for our hospitality, and we welcome visitors from other countries as our valued guests. With this delegation however we were afraid that it would turn out to be a MAGA event [which] we did not want to be part of.”

Vice President JD Vance said in a video posted on X on Tuesday: “There was so much excitement around Usha’s visit to Greenland this Friday that I decided that I didn’t want her to have all that fun by herself, and so I’m going to join her.”

He added: “Speaking for President Trump, we want to reinvigorate the security of the people of Greenland because we think it’s important to protecting the security of the entire world. Unfortunately, leaders in both America and in Denmark, I think, ignored Greenland for far too long. That’s been bad for Greenland. It’s also been bad for the security of the entire world. We think we can take things in a different direction so I’m gonna go check it out.”

President Donald Trump said in an interview with podcaster Vince Coglianese on Wednesday: “We need Greenland for international safety and security. We need it. We have to have it.”

Asked if people there are eager to join the U.S., Trump said he didn’t know “but I think we have to do it, and we have to convince them.”

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen wrote on Facebook on Wednesday: “President Trump’s interest in Greenland is not going away. This is evident from what he has said publicly several times, most recently again today.”

She wrote: “They know very well that Greenland is not for sale. They know very well that Greenland doesn’t want to be part of the United States. It has been communicated unambiguously to them both directly and in public.”

In a message to Greenlanders, she added: “The attention is overwhelming and the pressure is great. But it is in times like these that you show what you are made of. You have not been cowed. You have stood up for who you are—and you have shown what you stand for. That has my deepest respect.”

What’s Next

The vice president and second lady will only visit Pituffik Space Base during their one-day visit on Friday, meaning they are less likely to be confronted by Greelanders angry about Trump’s annexation comments.