The US and Denmark have announced a deal on Greenland’s security, resolving a diplomatic dispute sparked by President Donald Trump’s threats to seize it by force.
Nato said the deal would help stabilise the region, as Trump said Denmark would grant the US “permanent control over security, and all other needs” in the semi-autonomous Danish territory in the Arctic.
The leaders of Denmark and Greenland welcomed the deal to “strengthen security”, saying it was expected to be signed next week – but did not outline its contents.
This comes after months of threats by Trump to “take” Greenland over national security concerns, citing its strategic location for defence purposes and its mineral wealth.
No text of the agreement has been released. Trump said the deal came with “no cost to the United States” and would grant it the ability “to do what is necessary” to “secure and defend the security of Greenland”, in a post on Truth Social.
He said it included a rule that no US adversary could maintain a military presence in Greenland or “make sensitive investments in Greenland, without our express written approval”.
A Nato spokesperson said the military alliance welcomed the deal, which would “help advance security, stability and cooperation in this vital region”.
Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she was “pleased that there is a prospect of a good agreement” for all three parties, which was expected to be signed at the UN General Assembly next week.
The deal “strengthens our common security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic area” while also recognising “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination”, she said in a joint statement with Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen.
The agreement would still need to go through “the necessary parliamentary procedures to enter into force” once signed, the statement noted.
Nielsen said it was “gratifying that we are about to enter into an agreement that ensures and strengthens the security of Greenland, the Kingdom of Denmark, the United States and the Western alliance”.
“The agreement recognises Greenland’s interests and our place in international co-operation. It is for the benefit of us all,” he said.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said the deal helped “to reaffirm Danish sovereignty” over the island.
“I simply note that Danish sovereignty is respected, that international law is respected, and that this is what we were asking for. So it’s a good thing,” Macron was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.