President Donald Trump announced Saturday that the United States is sending a hospital ship to Greenland to provide medical care for residents in need. The president posted on social media, saying the effort is being coordinated with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, whom he appointed as special envoy to Greenland in December.

“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 not being taken care of there. It’s on the way!!!” Trump wrote, alongside an illustration of the USNS Mercy, one of the Navy’s two mobile hospital ships.

The USNS Mercy and its sister ship, the USNS Comfort, are designed to support troops during deployments and assist with disaster relief and humanitarian operations. During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the USNS Comfort was deployed to New York City to provide critical medical services.

Greenland, a sparsely populated Arctic island and Danish territory, has a limited transportation network connecting towns by boat, helicopter, and plane. The US maintains a military presence on the island at the Pituffik Space Base.

Governor Landry praised the effort, writing on social media that he is “proud to work” with Trump on what he called “this important issue,” emphasizing the administration’s commitment to humanitarian aid in the region.

President Trump’s announcement follows Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command reporting the evacuation of a US submarine crew member near Greenland’s capital, Nuuk.

It's unclear whether the hospital ship mission is directly connected to that evacuation.