US President Donald Trump has hailed a new security agreement with Denmark and Greenland, telling the United Nations General Assembly it gave Washington “permanent control over security” on the Arctic island.
The pact was signed by Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen in New York on September 22. It aims to strengthen military cooperation in the Arctic and the North Atlantic.
Trump described the accord as unprecedented and tied it directly to the defence of North America. He said the US would have the full ability to do whatever was necessary to protect the continent.
According to the text released by the White House, the agreement has no expiry date and bars non-NATO countries from setting up bases on the island without the consent of all parties. It also tightens screening of investment from outside NATO and the European Union, a measure aimed at China and Russia, CBS News reported.
The deal, which Trump announced ahead of the signing, updates a 1951 defence agreement under which the US operates Pituffik Space Base. It allows Washington to expand that facility and open two new sites at Narsarsuaq and Mestersvig, according to Reuters.
Frederiksen called it “a deal that can last forever”. She said it benefited the US, Greenland, Denmark and NATO and, by extension, European security.
Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen acknowledged the negotiations had been difficult but defended the outcome. He stressed that the framework respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark and the right of Greenlanders to decide their own future.
Nielsen said Greenland would remain a firm friend of the US and part of the Western alliance. “Your security is our security, and our security is your security,” he said.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the accord strengthened collective security in a region vital to Europe and North America alike.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said her visit to Nuuk earlier this month had underlined the strategic importance of the region and the scale of the threats it faced. “Challenges we will face together,” she wrote on X.
European Council President António Costa called the agreement a “positive step” for transatlantic cooperation. He praised its grounding in respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and the right of Greenlanders to self-determination.
Greenland is a self-governing territory of Denmark, an EU member state. The signing has ended months of friction after Trump repeatedly pressed for American control of the island and at times refused to rule out the use of force.
