FILE - In this Monday, March 19, 2018 file photo, Prime Minister of Iceland Katrin Jakobsdottir attends a press statement in Berlin, Germany. Iceland's leader has announced that she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep "prior commitments" by attending a trade union conference in Sweden. Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir says on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2019 planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden on Sept. 3, the day before Pence's arrival. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, file)

FILE - In this Monday, March 19, 2018 file photo, Prime Minister of Iceland Katrin Jakobsdottir attends a press statement in Berlin, Germany. Iceland's leader has announced that she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep "prior commitments" by attending a trade union conference in Sweden. Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir says on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2019 planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden on Sept. 3, the day before Pence's arrival. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn, file)

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Iceland’s leader has announced that she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep “prior commitments” by attending a trade union conference and meetings in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she’s planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions’ annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden, on Sept. 3 — the day before Pence’s arrival. She will only return the afternoon of Sept. 4 after private meetings with Nordic union leaders, her office said.

“This visit, that was organized by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it,” she told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday. Her office Wednesday confirmed that she had not changed her mind.

She also underscored that the arrangement was “absolutely not” about snubbing the Trump administration and that she had earlier this year met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The decision was made before President Donald Trump announced that he would cancel a visit to another Nordic nation, Denmark.

Pence is expected to discuss Iceland’s strategic importance in the Arctic and NATO’s efforts to counter Russia in the region. In July, the United States announced it would invest $57 million on military infrastructure near Iceland’s capital Reykjavik.

“This is unprecedented for an Icelandic prime minister,” historian Thor Whitehead told The Associated Press. “I doubt any other Western leader would decide to address a friendly conference abroad instead of welcoming a major foreign ally.”

The office of prime minister holds the highest authority in Iceland, where the presidency is a symbolic position without much formal power.

Since taking office, Jakobsdottir has spearheaded progressive policies on abortion rights, LGBT rights and climate change. Activists including members of her own Left Green Party have protested Pence’s visit, calling it “disrespectful” to minorities.

Pence’s visit is organized by Iceland’s foreign ministry, led by Gudlaugur Thor Thordarson from Iceland’s conservative Independence Party. The party is Iceland’s largest and entered into a rare coalition with Jakobsdottir’s party after failing to secure a majority in elections in 2017.

Pence will be the first U.S. vice president to visit Iceland, a country of just 350,000 people, since George H.W. Bush visited Reykjavik in 1983. </s> The top leader of Iceland said she will miss a visit to her tiny North Atlantic nation by U.S. Vice President Mike Pence next month in favor of speaking at a trade union conference in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said "prior commitments" will keep her from meeting with Pence in early September. She is scheduled to address the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden, on Sept. 3. Pence arrives Sept. 4 en route to the United Kingdom and Ireland.

"It was already known that I was offered to be the keynote speaker at the annual convention of the Nordic trade unions a long time ago, and like everyone knows I've never been one to shy away from labour market matters," Jakobsdottir said in an interview with RÚV, the Icelandic national broadcasting service.

Jakobsdottir said that Pence's visit has been organized by the nation's foreign ministry and "has been moving back and forth on the calendar so it has been difficult to plan around it."

The prime minister is a member of her country's Green Party. She supports abortion and LGBT rights and climate change activism. Although some in her party have been critical of Pence, Jakobsdottir insisted she is not trying to snub him.

"No, not at all," she said in the RÚV interview. "I had a good meeting with Mike Pompeo, the United States Secretary of State, earlier this year and likewise had a conversation with Donald Trump at a NATO meeting last year. I can assure everyone that when Mike Pence arrives in Iceland – I just hope the date is final now – that he will meet with Iceland's finest leaders."

The decision to visit Sweden and miss Pence was made before President Trump canceled his planned September trip to Denmark after its prime minister said the Danish government had no interest in discussing the sale of Greenland to the U.S.

"This is unprecedented for an Icelandic prime minister," historian Thor Whitehead told The Associated Press. "I doubt any other Western leader would decide to address a friendly conference abroad instead of welcoming a major foreign ally."

Pence's trip was announced in mid-August and it was meant "highlight Iceland's strategic importance in the Arctic and NATO's efforts to counter Russian aggression in the region," the White House said.

Last month it was announced that the U.S. will spend $57 million to house two fighter jet squadrons at Keflavík airport near Reykjavik. </s> Reykjavik: Iceland's leader has announced that she will skip US Vice President Mike Pence's visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep "prior commitments" by attending a trade union conference and meetings in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she's planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden, on September 3 - the day before Pence's arrival.

She will only return the afternoon of September 4 after private meetings with Nordic union leaders, her office said.

"This visit, that was organised by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organise oneself around it," she told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday. Her office Wednesday confirmed that she had not changed her mind. </s> (REYKJAVIK, Iceland) — Iceland’s leader has announced that she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep “prior commitments” by attending a trade union conference in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she’s planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions’ annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden, on Sept. 3 — the day before Pence’s arrival. She has no plans to return the following day for his visit.

“This visit, that was organized by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it,” she told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday. Her office Wednesday confirmed that she had not changed her mind.

She also underscored that the arrangement was “absolutely not” about snubbing the Trump administration and that she had earlier this year met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The decision was made before President Donald Trump announced that he would cancel a visit to another Nordic nation, Denmark.

Pence is expected to discuss Iceland’s strategic importance in the Arctic and NATO’s efforts to counter Russia in the region. In July, the United States announced it would invest $57 million on military infrastructure near Iceland’s capital Reykjavik.

“This is unprecedented for an Icelandic prime minister,” historian Thor Whitehead told The Associated Press. “I doubt any other Western leader would decide to address a friendly conference abroad instead of welcoming a major foreign ally.”

The office of prime minister holds the highest authority in Iceland, where the presidency is a symbolic position without much formal power.

Since taking office, Jakobsdottir has spearheaded progressive policies on abortion rights, LGBT rights and climate change. Activists including members of her own Left Green Party have protested Pence’s visit, calling it “disrespectful” to minorities.

Pence’s visit is organized by Iceland’s foreign ministry, led by Gudlaugur Thor Thordarson from Iceland’s conservative Independence Party. The party is Iceland’s largest and entered into a rare coalition with Jakobsdottir’s party after failing to secure a majority in elections in 2017.

Pence will be the first U.S. vice president to visit Iceland, a country of just 350,000 people, since George H.W. Bush visited Reykjavik in 1983. </s> Icelandic Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she won’t be around when Vice President Mike Pence visits the country next month.

The leader of the Nordic nation has planned for months to give a keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions’ annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden on Sept. 3, which happens to be the day before Pence is set to land, her office said.

“This visit, that was organized by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it,” Jakobsdottir told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday.

“The fact is that I was very long ago asked to give the keynote speech at the annual conference of the Nordic trades unions movement and, as everybody knows, I have made workplace matters a personal issue,” she said.

Jakobsdottir will return to Iceland the next day, in the afternoon.

The Green Party member emphasized that her decision to skip the visit was “absolutely not” about spurning the Trump administration.

“I had a good meeting with Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, earlier this year and also had a discussion with Donald Trump at the NATO meeting last year. I can promise everyone that when Mike Pence comes here — and I am working on the assumption that the date is now firm – that he will meet a top-ranking team of Icelandic leaders,” Jakobsdottir said.

During Pence’s visit, he is expected to discuss Iceland’s importance to NATO. </s> REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Iceland's leader has announced that she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep "prior commitments" by attending a trade union conference in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she's planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden, on Sept. 3 — the day before Pence's arrival. She has no plans to return the following day for his visit.

"This visit, that was organized by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it," she told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday. Her office Wednesday confirmed that she had not changed her mind.

She also underscored that the arrangement was "absolutely not" about snubbing the Trump administration and that she had earlier this year met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The decision was made before President Donald Trump announced that he would cancel a visit to another Nordic nation, Denmark. </s> Iceland Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said that she will not be around for Vice President Pence when he visits the country next month.

Jakobsdottir told the Icelandic news outlet RUV that it was “very difficult” to organize herself around the visit, which is planned for Sept. 4, saying she’ll be out of the country on other business.

“The fact is that I was very long ago asked to give the keynote speech at the annual conference of the Nordic trades unions movement and, as everybody knows, I have made workplace matters a personal issue,” she told the outlet. “It is also a fact that this visit that was organised by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it.”

Jakobsdottir’s politics differ sharply from Trump’s and Pence’s. A member of the country’s Green Party and an avowed feminist, she supports abortion and LGBT rights and climate change. She downplayed the notion that her absence during Pence’s visit was a snub or an act of protest.

“Absolutely not,” she told RUV. “I had a good meeting with Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, earlier this year and also had a discussion with Donald Trump at the NATO meeting last year. I can promise everyone that when Mike Pence comes here — and I am working on the assumption that the date is now firm — that he will meet a top-ranking team of Icelandic leaders.”

[Iceland is trying to close the gender pay gap by publicly shaming companies]

Pence is expected to highlight Iceland’s importance to NATO during his visit.

Jakobsdottir’s trip abroad was finalized before Trump said Tuesday that he would cancel a state visit to nearby Denmark when that country said it would not entertain the sale of Greenland, an autonomous island that is part of the kingdom of Denmark.

That fight escalated on Wednesday, with Trump saying Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen had made “nasty” comments about his interest in having the United States purchase Greenland.

“I thought it was not a nice statement, the way she blew me off,” Trump said. “She shouldn’t treat the United States that way. … She said ‘absurd.’ That’s not the right word to use.”

Historian Thor Whitehead told the Associated Press that he thought the Jakobsdottir’s decision was “unprecedented.”

“I doubt any other Western leader would decide to address a friendly conference abroad instead of welcoming a major foreign ally,” he said.

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Elizabeth Warren just met her look-alike at a rally. Can you tell them apart? </s> Iceland's leader won't be around to welcome Pence

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Iceland's leader has announced she will skip U.S. Vice President Mike Pence's visit to her Nordic nation, opting instead to keep a prior commitment to attend a trade union conference in Sweden.

Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said she's planned for months to give the keynote speech for the Council of Nordic Trade Unions' annual meeting in Malmo, Sweden on Sept. 3, the day before Pence's arrival. She has no plans to return the following day for his visit.

She told Icelandic broadcaster RUV on Tuesday that the visit "has been bouncing a lot around the calendar so that it has been very difficult to organize oneself around it." Her office Wednesday confirmed she hadn't changed her mind.

The decision was made before President Donald Trump canceled plans to visit Denmark. </s> From left, Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Prime Minister of Iceland Katrin Jakobsdottir arrive at Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik, Tuesday Aug. 20, 2019, ahead of the Nordic Prime Ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Egill Bjarnason)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two days after he said buying Greenland wasn’t a top priority, President Donald Trump canceled an upcoming trip to Denmark, which owns the mostly frozen island, after its prime minister dismissed the idea.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen had called Trump’s musing about buying the Danish territory “an absurd discussion” after the former real estate mogul-turned-president began to talk up the idea.

Trump said Sunday that he was interested in such a deal for strategic purposes, but said a purchase was not a priority at this time. “It’s not No. 1 on the burner,” he told reporters.

Trump even joked about his proposal as it came in for ridicule, tweeting a doctored photo of a glistening Trump skyscraper looming over a small village in the Arctic territory.

“I promise not to do this to Greenland,” he joked Monday.

But on Tuesday, Trump abruptly canceled the visit, also by tweet.

Just a few hours earlier, the U.S. ambassador to Denmark tweeted that it was “ready for the POTUS @realDonaldTrump visit!” using an acronym for “President of the United States” along with Trump’s Twitter handle.

Trump wrote: “Denmark is a very special country with incredible people, but based on Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s comments, that she would have no interest in discussing the purchase of Greenland, I will be postponing our meeting scheduled in two weeks for another time.”

He added: “The Prime Minister was able to save a great deal of expense and effort for both the United States and Denmark by being so direct. I thank her for that and look forward to rescheduling sometime in the future!”

White House spokesman Judd Deere said later that the visit to Denmark has been canceled.

The White House announced in late July that Trump had accepted an invitation to visit Denmark’s Queen Margrethe and participate in a series of meetings, including with Frederiksen and business leaders.

The trip, set to begin at the end of August, includes a stop in Poland to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the start of World War II.

Trump is expected to go ahead with the Warsaw visit.

Asked about Greenland on Sunday as he prepared to return to Washington after a vacation week at his central New Jersey home, Trump said “strategically … it would be nice” to own the island.

He also suggested he might not visit Denmark at all, saying he didn’t think the previously announced trip had been “absolutely set in stone yet.”

Associated Press writer Jill Colvin contributed to this report.
The office of the Prime Minister of Iceland Katrín Jakobsdóttir confirms that she will not meet the Vice President of the United States Mike Pence on his visit in September, citing "prior commitments."