The Danish military reported that its Arctic command operations successfully conducted an emergency evacuation of a United States submarine crew member near Greenland for critical medical care.

According to a post on the Danish Joint Arctic Command’s Facebook page, the evacuation took place on Saturday. The crew member was airlifted approximately 7 nautical miles (about 8 miles) from Nuuk, Greenland’s capital city. After the evacuation, he was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

The operation involved a Danish Seahawk helicopter, which was dispatched from an inspection vessel to carry out the rescue.

In a related development late on Saturday, former U.S. President Donald Trump declared his intention to send a hospital ship to Greenland, which is a Danish territory. He claimed that the health needs of the local population were being neglected, a statement that led to a swift response from Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in defense of her country’s healthcare services.

“In collaboration with the wonderful Governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, we plan to dispatch an excellent hospital ship to Greenland to assist the numerous sick individuals who are currently unattended to. It’s already en route!!!” Trump stated on his Truth Social account, mentioning his special envoy for Greenland.

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen, in an interview with the national broadcaster DR, mentioned that the Danish authorities were not previously informed about the hospital ship’s deployment.

This incident has put a strain on the traditionally strong post-World War II relationship between Denmark and the United States, especially following Trump’s increased discussions about a potential U.S. acquisition of Greenland, which is rich in minerals and strategically situated in the Arctic.

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On Sunday, Frederiksen took to Facebook to praise Denmark’s healthcare system, expressing her satisfaction with living in a country where healthcare is free and equally accessible to everyone, irrespective of their financial status.

“The same is true in Greenland,” she affirmed, ending her post with a cheerful note: “Happy Sunday to you all,” accompanied by a blushing, smiling emoji.

Greenlandic lawmaker Aaja Chemnitz, also commented on the situation via Facebook, criticizing Trump’s plan. “Donald Trump wants to send a poorly maintained hospital ship to Greenland. This appears quite desperate and does little to help establish a lasting and sustainable improvement in our healthcare system,” she noted.

She concluded her post with the remark, “Another day. Another crazy news story,” paired with a smiley face emoji.