Usha Vance, the second lady, is scheduled to join the White House national security adviser, the energy secretary and other U.S. officials to visit Greenland this week, amid President Trump’s continued push to take over the island, officials said on Sunday.
In a statement, the Trump administration said Ms. Vance will visit Greenland with one of her children on Thursday, to visit historical sites and attend a national dog sled race.
“Ms. Vance and the delegation are excited to witness this monumental race and celebrate Greenlandic culture and unity,” the statement said.
Separately, Michael Waltz, the national security adviser, is expected to tour a U.S. military base, two U.S. officials said. Chris Wright, the energy secretary, is expected to join him, according to another person with knowledge of the visit, as the Trump administration increases its focus on Arctic security and the Western Hemisphere.
Other senior administration officials may also visit, according to one of the officials, all of who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the trip.
A spokesman for Mr. Waltz did not respond to a request for comment.
A White House spokesman did not answer a question about whether the officials had been invited.
Mr. Trump has continued to ratchet up his talk of seizing Greenland, part of an expansionist mind-set in his second term in office that has also taken aim at Canada and Panama.
Greenland is part of Denmark but has an autonomous government. Officials in both have been jarred by Mr. Trump’s aggressive approach to gaining some kind of control of Greenland, which he offered to buy during his first term and since then has said, “one way or the other, we’re going to get it.”
The prime minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, made clear that neither Denmark nor Greenland had solicited the trips.
“The visit from the United States cannot be seen in isolation from the public statements that have been made,” Ms. Frederiksen said. “In the kingdom, we wish to cooperate with the Americans. But it must — and shall — be a cooperation based on the fundamental values of sovereignty and mutual respect between nations and peoples. This is something we take seriously.”
This will be Ms. Vance’s second solo trip internationally as second lady. The other was a visit this month to Italy leading the U.S. delegation to the Special Olympics World Winter Games.
