The King sparks applause in Katuaq

During the coffee break in Katuaq, Chairman of the Greenland Government Jens-Frederik Nielsen gives a short interview to the press present,

He says, among other things, that he is very happy about the King's visit:

- He is popular and loved by the citizens of this country, and he is a very unifying figure. This is proven every time he is here.

- I am happy that he wanted to come, says Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

He is also asked about the visit's signal to the USA and Donald Trump:

- We have been in this situation for a long time. I think the most important thing is that the citizens of Greenland can feel the solidarity with the royal family, which proves to be very strong every year.

There is applause and cheers when King Frederik arrives at the coffee table in a packed Katuaq on Wednesday afternoon.

During the coffee table, the citizens present have the opportunity to greet the king, and this has drawn many from their homes and to the coffee table in the cultural center.

Two of the guests, Sussi Høegh from Ilulissat and Elisabeth Thorin from Qasigiannguit, are already in Katuaq. They hope to see the king up close.

- It is important for us to see the king in our town. That is why we are here as guests in the coffee shop, says Sussi Høegh and continues:

- I am not very good at Danish. But I would tell him that one of our classmates in the pedagogical school, Frederik, would very much like to greet him, says Sussi Høegh.

Sit opposite Elisabeth Thorin:

- I would say to him in Greenlandic, "tikilluarit", (welcome, ed.). That is it, says Elisabeth Thorin.

Before 3:45 p.m. Katuaq had to lock its doors because there are no more seats inside Katuaq.

The final preparations for the coffee party in Katuaq are almost complete.

Katuaq's director Ivaaq Kriegel informs Sermitsiaq that the cultural center expects 500 guests this afternoon:

- We have baked cakes for about 500 guests. And we expect the number of guests to be about 500. When the guests start arriving, we will get busy brewing fresh coffee, says Ivaaq Kriegel.

The director informs that Katuaq's doors will open to guests as early as 3:00 p.m. King Frederik is expected to arrive at 3:45 p.m.:

- We know that the King would like to greet guests who come here, says Ivaaq Kriegel.

A little after 3 p.m., a number of citizens have already arrived in Katuaq to be ready for the coffee break, which begins at 3:45 p.m.

The next item on the agenda is a visit to the Norwegian Defence Force ship Vædderen in the harbour in Nuuk.

Here, students from the Arctic Basic Education greet the King, as well as showing off equipment to King Frederik and Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

Due to the coffee party in connection with the King's visit to Nuuk, the police will be heavily present around Katuaq.

This is what the Greenland Police writes on their Facebook page.

- In addition, increased traffic is expected around Katuaq between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM in connection with the planned coffee party, it says.

Citizens are urged to show consideration for each other in traffic in the area.

King Frederik visits Royal Greenland in Nuuk, where he will be given a tour of the company's factory.

Sermitsiaq's reporter reports from the scene that the work of filleting fish at the factory continues while the King is visiting.

King Frederik and his entourage are appropriately dressed in plastic suits and masks for hygiene reasons during the tour.

During the tour, the King greets one of the employees and is given a brief explanation of the various machines, while he listens with interest.

Chairman of the Greenland Government, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, is also on the tour.

Helga Rina Kristoffersen is 18 years old and is in the first year of GUX.

She is one of those who sang for King Frederik during his visit to her place of education on Wednesday:

- I think it is great that he comes to visit us. However, I will not accompany him on his further visits as I will be studying myself, she tells Sermitsiaq.

GUX students have chosen to sing “Nuna asiilasooq” for the king during his visit on Wednesday.

Here the students were able to meet King Frederik, who is visiting GUX during his visit to Nuuk.

The next item on the day is a visit and tour of Royal Greenland, after which the trip continues to the inspection ship Vædderen, where King Frederik will meet students at the Arctic Basic Education.

The day ends with a coffee meeting in Katuaq at 3:45 p.m.

King Frederik has finished lunch and says a few words to the press as he comes out of Hans Egede's House:

- It is a great pleasure for me to be back in Greenland, he says and continues:

- The well-being of the Greenlandic people is very important to me. It always has been, and it always will be, the king says.

Here he is certainly referring to the pressure that the population has been under from the USA. The superpower has very directly expressed its desire to take over Greenland.

King Frederik has previously stated that the situation in Greenland has greatly affected both him and Queen Mary.

After lunch, King Frederik will continue to GUX:

- My program is now getting started, and I am looking forward to walking up to the high school, where I will meet the youth and talk to them a little about how they see their country right now.

Stina Jensen, 75, is standing at Hans Egede's House and has just seen King Frederik enter the house where he is going to have lunch.

Stina Jensen is from the older generation that cares a lot about the royal family:

- I was touched to the core. Seeing him is like getting warmth in my body. I am very touched by his visit, especially at this time when we have experienced difficult things from the outside.

- I have looked through the entire program and will follow the king all day. Of course, I will also go to the coffee break, she says.

King Frederik has driven from the airport and arrived for a visit to the Danish Ombudsman Julie Præst Wilche.

On the way, the king greeted children from the Mikisoq kindergarten.

Sermitsiaq's reporter reports that quite a few citizens were present, and of course also a certain security presence in the form of police.

Gerda Petersen from Nuuk is one of the citizens who is at the airport to welcome the king.

- I am very happy that he is now coming to visit us. It is important for the country that the king is coming in such a difficult time, she told Sermitsiaq.

A flight with King Frederik has now landed at Nuuk Airport, and the King has greeted the Chairman of the Government of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen.

When the King stepped off the plane, cheers could be heard from the citizens who were standing on the edge of the airport area.

A few citizens turned out to see King Frederik land in Nuuk.

One of them is Hansine Lyberth, and she tells Sermitsiaq that she follows King Frederik closely for a special reason:

- I was born in 1968, the same year as the King. So it is important for me to follow the King.

- I am on holiday in Nuuk, and therefore I have taken the opportunity to see him arrive and follow him on his visit. I am also going home to Maniitsoq tomorrow. I will use today to follow him and go to a coffee shop in Katuaq in the afternoon, says Hansine Lyberth to Sermitsiaq.

At 11:00, Greenlandic and Danish media are ready to cover King Frederik's arrival in Nuuk.

Arrival is expected at 11:30, where Chairman of Naalakkersuisut Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Chairman of Inatsisartut Kim Kielsen will receive him.

Sermitsiaq follows today's royal visit to Nuuk, where King Frederik will, among other things, attend a coffee meeting in Katuaq.

King Frederik will act as a unifying figure for the entire Kingdom of Denmark when he arrives in Nuuk on Wednesday morning at 11:30.

That is the assessment of historian Emma Rønberg Paaske.

This is the King's third visit to Greenland since he became regent just over two years ago in January 2024.

The frequent visits to Greenland come as a result of the unrest that US President Donald Trump has created among the population with his repeated statements about control over Greenland.

- It is of course important that the king, who is also the king of Greenland, steps up and ensures that everything is as it should be and instills hope in turbulent times, says Emma Rønberg Paaske.

The royals are limited in terms of acting or expressing themselves politically, as the Danish monarchy is constitutional and therefore does not have real power in the traditional sense.

- But he has what can be called soft power, which means that he can step up and be a symbol of our cohesion in the realm, says Emma Paaske.

The king himself has not directly linked the visit to Greenland with the American interest in the island and Trump's statements, which is of course related to the fact that the king cannot or should not carry out political actions on his own.

But when the King announced his trip to Greenland, it was said that he and Queen Mary have been following the developments, where Greenland has been under pressure from the other side of the Atlantic.

- We feel very much for the Greenlandic people, and what has happened in Greenland in recent weeks has touched us very much, he said during a press conference on a royal state visit to Lithuania at the end of January.

The relationship between the Greenlanders and the Danish royal house goes back to 1921, when Christian X traveled there on the first official trip, after which successive rulers have had a close relationship with the island.

But King Frederik's is particularly strong.

He has travelled the country extensively both as a child and as an adult. Both in official contexts as Crown Prince and King, as a naval officer in 1996 on the inspection ship "Vædderen", and not least when he undertook the 2500-kilometre long sledge journey "Expedition Sirus 2000".

According to Emma Rønberg Paaske, he is the regent who has had the closest ties with the Greenlanders.

- It is certainly an advantage, because he knows the country and the Greenlandic people, she says, emphasizing that he is enormously loved by the Greenlandic population.

The Greenlanders have also expressed that they wanted a visit and more attention from the King at this time, she says.

- So of course he will come.

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On Saturday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre, during the security conference in the German city of Munich.

Here the two talked about Greenland, Rubio writes on the social media X.

- During my meeting with the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre, we discussed Norway's crucial role in Arctic security and Greenland's strategic importance.

- We look forward to cooperating with Norway on the security of supply chains, including for critical minerals, writes Rubio.

The Norwegian news agency NTB writes that Støre said during the security conference that the meeting went well and that he had used the opportunity to bring up Greenland.

The two also talked about Ukraine, Støre tells NTB.

Trump revived the debate about Greenland on Friday when he told reporters in front of the White House that negotiations are currently underway about Greenland.

The White House also shared a Valentine's Day card for Greenland on Saturday on the social media X, which read "it's time for us to define our situationship".

Denmark's Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, reiterated on Saturday that Denmark disagrees with the US gaining ownership of Greenland.

With support from the US, NATO has launched Arctic Sentry, which will strengthen security through exercises and surveillance.

NATO has decided to launch Arctic Sentry, which will strengthen security in the Arctic through exercises and surveillance. Reuters reports.

The decision comes after the serious tensions that US President Donald Trump triggered with his claim to ownership of Greenland.

The new mission means that NATO will take over the coordination of the military presence in the Arctic. This is happening with American support and can thus be seen as a way to address Trump's concerns about security in the Arctic.

On Tuesday, the Chairman of the Greenlandic Government Jens-Frederik Nielsen shared a picture of himself and Danish-American actor Viggo Mortensen on the social media Facebook.

Jens-Frederik Nielsen expressed his joy that the actor is showing support by being in Greenland during a difficult time:

- Viggo has been in Nuuk in recent days to show his support for us during a time of great international attention and pressure from outside. It means something. Not only when political leaders show support, but also when voices from the world of art and culture choose to stand up, he writes.

In the same post, the Chairman of the Greenlandic Government says that later this week he will participate in the international security conference in Munich, where the world's decision-makers and security experts will discuss global security, stability and responsibility.

- Here I want to make it clear that we in Greenland must be part of the international conversations when it comes to security in the Arctic and in the world. That we take responsibility. And that decisions about our country are made here at home, says Jens-Frederik Nielsen.