US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an agreement with Denmark and Greenland aimed at strengthening security in the Arctic and North Atlantic, easing tensions over his repeated calls for Greenland to become part of the United States.
The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, days after Trump announced the deal to expand the US military presence on the vast Arctic island while keeping it under Danish control.
“This is tremendous for Europe and for the United States and for everybody,” Trump said before the signing. “And for Greenland, it's going to be incredible.”
For months, Trump has expressed his desire for Greenland to join the United States and threatened to seize the semiautonomous territory from Denmark, a NATO ally. He did not respond Tuesday when asked whether US acquisition of Greenland was now off the table.
US military presence in Greenland
Officials from the US, Greenland and Denmark held months of negotiations to address some of Trump's security concerns over the mineral-rich island.
Trump's push for control of Greenland strained relations within NATO. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen had warned that a US takeover could mean the end of the Atlantic alliance.
The dispute unsettled many of Greenland's roughly 56,000 residents and strained ties between the US and Denmark and its European Union partners, which increased security exercises and financial support for the island.
Trade and access to Greenland's natural resources have also featured in concerns over its future. About two-thirds of the territory lies within the Arctic Circle, where melting sea ice has opened additional shipping routes.
The US military has maintained a presence in Greenland for decades, but since 1945 its footprint has declined from thousands of troops at 17 bases and installations to about 200 personnel at the remote Pituffik Space Base in northwest Greenland.
The base supports missile warning, missile defence and space surveillance operations for the US and NATO.
Addressing the UN General Assembly earlier Tuesday, Trump disclosed some details of the agreement.
“We will immediately begin the process of developing a large military presence in the appropriate locations,” he said, including “building two very major military bases.”
Denmark's parliament approved a bill last year allowing US military bases on Danish territory, expanding a 2023 defence agreement with the Biden administration that gave US troops broad access to Danish air bases.
Trump had previously insisted that the US needed to “take Greenland” to prevent Russia or China from doing so. Although he said he would prefer to “make a deal” for the territory, he added: “one way or the other, we’re going to have Greenland.”
Agreement allows expanded US military presence
Under the agreement released by the Danish government after the signing, Washington can “modernize and expand” its activities at Pituffik Space Base.
The US can also establish “defense areas” at Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland and Mestersvig in the east. The agreement allows Washington to establish additional defence areas and strengthen military operations or facilities on the island.
US contracts for goods and services related to establishing, maintaining or dismantling such bases are to be awarded to Greenlandic sources “to the maximum extent possible.”
The accord also provides broad US military mobility across Greenland, including “undersea access.”
Non-NATO countries will not be allowed to establish their own manned or unmanned military installations in Greenland or maintain a “persistent” military presence unless all signatories agree otherwise.
The agreement has no end date. If Greenland becomes independent, it would remain in NATO and assume Denmark's rights and obligations under the accord.
Parties hail agreement
Mikkel Runge Olesen, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute of International Studies, said Greenland and Denmark could end the crisis without compromising sovereignty, while the US would receive a somewhat more favourable arrangement than under the existing defence treaty.
However, he said relations among the US, Denmark and Greenland were likely to remain affected by the dispute long after Trump's presidency and that the crisis could have a significant and lasting negative impact on transatlantic relations.
“The lost trust will take decades to rebuild,” he said.
Frederiksen described the agreement as a “deal that can last forever” and said it was good for the US, Greenland, Denmark and the broader NATO alliance.
“Mr. President, you have been very clear: You don’t want adversaries to come too close,” she said. “I fully agree.”
Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen called the agreement “a win-win-win agreement.”
“Your security is our security,” he said, “and our security is your security.”