Thousands of people in Iceland have signed a petition condemning comments reportedly made by Donald Trump’s nominee for US ambassador to the country, after he joked that Iceland should become the 52nd state of the United States.
According to Politico, former Republican congressman Billy Long made the remarks on Wednesday, telling colleagues that Iceland would become the 52nd US state and that he would serve as its governor.
The comments were reported just hours before senior officials from Greenland and Denmark were due to meet US representatives, amid renewed concerns over Trump’s past threats to seize Greenland.
The reaction in Reykjavík was immediate. Iceland’s foreign ministry said it had contacted the US embassy to seek clarification.
“The ministry for foreign affairs contacted the US embassy in Iceland to verify the veracity of the alleged comments,” it said in a statement.
A petition calling on Iceland’s foreign minister, Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, to reject Long’s appointment described the remarks as offensive, even if intended as a joke.
“These words, spoken by Billy Long, whom Donald Trump has nominated as ambassador to Iceland, may have been said in jest,” the petition said. “Still, they are offensive to Iceland and the Icelandic people, who have had to fight for their freedom and have always been a friend to the United States.”
Within hours of being launched, the petition had attracted more than 3,200 signatures, urging Washington to nominate someone who shows “greater respect for Iceland and the Icelandic people”.
On Wednesday, Long apologised for the comments in an interview with Arctic Today, a news outlet covering the polar region. He said the remarks were made in jest during a conversation in which others were joking about Jeff Landry, Trump’s special envoy to Greenland.
“There was nothing serious about that,” Long was quoted as saying. “I was with some people I hadn’t met for three years, and they were kidding about Jeff Landry being governor of Greenland, and they started joking about me.”
“If anyone took offence to it, then I apologise,” he added.
Long said he understood why the remarks had caused concern but insisted they should not be taken seriously.
“I apologise and that’s my only comment. I look forward to working with the people of Iceland, and I apologise it was taken that way,” he said.
On Thursday, Sigmar Guðmundsson, a member of Iceland’s parliament from the centrist Liberal Reform party, described the comments as ill-judged given current geopolitical tensions.
“It is not a particularly funny joke,” he told the newspaper Morgunblaðið. “It goes without saying that this is extremely serious for a small country like Iceland.”
He said security arguments often cited by the US in relation to Greenland also applied to Iceland, pointing to the strategic location of both islands.
Guðmundsson added that the episode reflected a growing lack of respect in the US towards the sovereignty of smaller states.
“Icelanders must have the courage, despite our friendly relations with the United States and our ties through Nato, to discuss where and how our security interests are best served in this changing world,” he said.
