BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – Gov. Jeff Landry has responded after Greenland leaders reportedly rejected an offer for assistance from a U.S. Navy hospital ship.
“Shame on Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen!” the governor said. “President Donald J. Trump and America care.”
In a post to social media, President Trump announced he wanted to send the hospital boat to Greenland. He referenced Gov. Landry, who is serving as the president’s special envoy to the Arctic island.
“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 are not being taken care of there,” President Trump said in the post.
According to a report from the Associated Press, Nielsen, the prime minister of Greenland, turned down the offer. He also took issue with President Trump’s statement about healthcare on the Arctic island.
RELATED: Greenland says ‘no thanks’ to US Navy hospital ship offered by Trump and Landry
“We have a public health system where treatment is free for citizens,” Nielsen explained. “That is a deliberate choice and a fundamental part of our society. This is not how it works in the U.S.A., where it costs money to see a doctor.”
The governor claimed he has heard about issues with the healthcare system in Greenland. He added that the U.S. is committed to defending the island, which he said begins by ensuring its people are defended against basic illnesses.
“After speaking to many Greenlanders about the day-to-day problems they face, one issue stood out — healthcare. Many villages and small towns lack basic services that Americans often take for granted,” Gov. Landry said.
Landry highlighted many of the specific healthcare problems that he said exist in Greenland.
“Small settlements are without permanent doctors, diagnostic tools, or specialist care, forcing residents to travel great distances for vital treatments that should be available at home. A healthy Greenland is vital for America’s national security,” Gov. Landry explained.
President Trump named Landry special envoy to Greenland in December and has said the United States needs ownership of the island for security reasons. Denmark, a U.S. Nato ally, currently controls Greenland.
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Navy’s two hospital ships, the USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort, are currently at a shipyard in Mobile, Alabama.
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