Dispute over Greenland | Greenland, Denmark and USA sign agreement

The dispute over Greenland caused considerable tension in NATO. Photo: dpa/AP/Evgeniy Maloletka New York.  After a long dispute and harsh threats, the USA, Denmark and Greenland have signed a security agreement that allows the USA to expand its military presence on the Arctic island. US President Donald Trump, Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen signed the agreement into force on Tuesday in New York. The USA can therefore build two new military bases on the island, and China and Russia should be pushed back.

Greenland is an autonomous region of Denmark, a member of the EU and NATO. Trump had repeatedly threatened to annex the island for months, causing dismay among NATO partners. Last week, the USA and Denmark announced that they had agreed to the agreement. However, details were only announced on Tuesday after the signing on the sidelines of the UN general debate in New York.

The ten-page agreement recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and the right to self-determination of the Greenlanders. The US is allowed to build two more military bases in Narsarsuaq in the south and in Mestersvig in the east of Greenland. The Pituffik base in northwest Greenland, which has existed since 1951 and where around 200 soldiers were recently stationed, can also be expanded and modernized.

Before the signing, Trump had already announced in his speech to the UN General Assembly that he would significantly expand the US military presence in Greenland. "We will build two very large military bases," said the US President. He described the agreement as “unprecedented.” No opponent of the USA would be allowed to establish a military presence in Greenland or to make sensitive investments there without the written consent of the USA.

Trump had always justified his claims to ownership of Greenland with US security interests in the Arctic - and with protection against influence from Russia and China. Specifically, the agreement now excludes states and investors from states that are not members of NATO or the EU from strategically important sectors in Greenland. The agreement also stipulates that even if Greenland becomes independent from Denmark, it will remain bound by the agreement and must remain a member of NATO or join.

The agreement will build “a long-term, fantastic relationship” and is also good for NATO, Trump said at the signing. On Friday, Trump said the treaty would give the United States "permanent control over security and all other matters in Greenland."

Germany and the EU welcomed the agreement. Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) viewed it as “good news” that the negotiations had “led to an amicable solution in accordance with international law”. The agreement strengthens “our transatlantic partnership in NATO” and contributes “to security in the Far North.” EU Council President António Costa also spoke of a “positive step for transatlantic cooperation and security in the Arctic.”

Greenland is geostrategically located in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans between North America and Europe. The island is also on the direct route of a possible missile trajectory between Russia and the USA. Valuable raw materials are also stored on the island. 

An existing defense agreement from 1951, which was updated in 2004, had already allowed the USA to expand its military presence in Greenland, provided that Denmark and Greenland were informed in advance.  AFP/nd

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