US Secretary of State Marco Rubio kicked off a three-nation NATO tour with a stop Tuesday in Iceland.
Rubio called Iceland “a good friend” and offered no hint of tensions with the island that is a NATO member but has no army. Before the Greenland deal was signed last month, Iceland was an occasional feature of Trump's comments and social media complaints about NATO allies not doing enough to support the US.
Rubio later this week will visit Greece and Portugal to discuss economic and security cooperation and other issues, the State Department said in a statement.
In Athens, it said, Rubio said will lead the US delegation for the sixth session of the US-Greece Strategic Dialogue, a high-level diplomatic forum on deepening cooperation on defense, energy, regional security and other areas.
Rubio then will fly to Lisbon for talks with Portuguese officials "to advance defense, economic and technology cooperation," the statement said.
In remarks to reporters Monday before leaving Washington, Rubio gave no indication that his mission was to clean up or clarify the administration's strategy when it comes to the Arctic, NATO or Europe more broadly.
But he did call all three of the countries he will visit “strong allies” that are important for protecting US national interests.
Rubio said on social media that his visit to Iceland was meant to “advance our shared priorities: a secure Arctic, stronger commercial and energy ties, and closer defence cooperation.”
Last month, however, Trump alarmed Icelanders when he posted a map showing the colours of the US flag sprawling across all of North America and extending to Greenland and Iceland.
In response, Iceland Foreign Secretary Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, whom Rubio will meet on Tuesday, summoned US Ambassador Billy Long to a meeting and said she made it clear that the post was unacceptable.
Iceland, which is just 180 miles (290 km) away from Greenland, had already been on edge after Trump mistakenly named the country four times while speaking about Greenland.
At Rubio's next stop in Athens, he may be dealing with another ambassador controversy. Representative Gregory Meeks, a New York Democrat who is the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said last week that he would investigate allegations of misconduct and impropriety by the US ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle.
In a letter to Rubio, Meeks said he wanted answers following the allegations reported by The Wall Street Journal last month and that he would call for Guilfoyle's dismissal if the behaviour outlined in the news report was true.
The Journal reported that Guilfoyle told guests at a reception that the US could undermine the Greek government if it chose to, promoted the business interests of one particular Greek construction and energy company, and allowed its lobbyist into private diplomatic meetings.
Some Greek opposition parties have called for an inquiry into the allegations, but it isn't clear if they will proceed.
Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host and California prosecutor who was once engaged to Trump's son Donald Jr., has denied any wrongdoing and Rubio has defended her before.
(With inputs from Reuters & AP via PTI)