Donald Trump Signs Arctic Security Agreement With Denmark and Greenland at UN General Assembly

UN Deal, Arctic Security

United States President Donald Trump signed an agreement with Denmark and Greenland aimed at strengthening Arctic and North Atlantic security, easing tensions over his repeated calls for Greenland to become part of the United States. Trump signed the deal Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, after Trump announced last Friday that the agreement with Denmark gives the U.S. "permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns."

A White House official told ABC News that "The three leaders will formalize their new agreement that will secure and defend the security of Greenland and the United States," as the governments provided few details before the signing. Trump addressed the UN General Assembly on Tuesday morning and said the agreement gives the U.S. "permanent control over security and all other needs" of the territory, while also saying no U.S. adversary would be permitted to establish a military presence in Greenland or make sensitive investments there without Washington's "express written approval."

ABC News

SourcesSouth China Morning PostAnadolu Ajansı

Bases, Veto, and Sovereignty

The agreement described by ABC News and Anadolu Ajansı centered on U.S. ability to expand its military footprint in Greenland while keeping it under Danish control, with a State Department official saying the deal "explicitly guarantees the United States the complete ability to do what it deems is necessary in Greenland."A

Al Jazeera reported that the U.S. will open two military bases in Greenland, with the agreement expected to be signed Tuesday at the UN General Assembly in New York, while its text had not yet been officially publicised.

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera said the deal would allow the U.S. a veto to prevent "adversaries" from establishing a military presence or making "sensitive investments" in Greenland without its approval, and it said a U.S. Department of State official clarified that non-NATO states would be barred from "making investments in Greenland that could threaten the United States."

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen told Al Jazeera that the agreement recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the kingdom and the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination, while Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the agreement recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark and the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination.

SourcesABC NewsAl Jazeera

What Comes Next

The sources said Trump announced plans to expand the U.S. military presence in Greenland, and Anadolu Ajansı quoted Trump saying, "We will immediately begin the process of developing a large military presence in the appropriate locations. We'll be building two very major military bases."

Al Jazeera said the first base would be in Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland and the second would be located in Mestersvig on the east coast, and it described Narsarsuaq as a settlement whose population has dwindled to a few dozen people since the U.S. closed its Bluie West One military base in 1958.

Al Jazeera said about 150 troops remain permanently at the northern Pituffik Space Base monitoring for missiles, and it described the Cold War-era context in which American nuclear bombers and nuclear early warning systems were based on the island.

The sources also tied the deal to preventing other powers from investing in Greenland's sensitive sectors, with ABC News quoting a State Department official saying "only the U.S. and our allies can make sensitive investments in Greenland," and with Anadolu Ajansı saying no U.S. adversary would be permitted to establish a military presence or make sensitive investments without Washington's "express written approval."

SourcesAnadolu AjansıABC News