Trump, Denmark, Greenland to sign Arctic security deal
President Donald Trump is due to meet leaders of Greenland and Denmark on Tuesday to sign a deal allowing a larger US military presence on Greenland. The agreement is expected to open two new military sites and could end the standoff over the strategically located island.
Deal to be signed at UN General Assembly in New York Hopes for an end to standoff over strategic island Denmark says deal puts Arctic security under NATO watch Trump says deal gives US permanent control over security By Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen COPENHAGEN, Sept 22 (Reuters) — President Donald Trump is due to meet with leaders of Greenland and Denmark on Tuesday to sign a deal that will allow a larger US military presence on Greenland and could end a standoff over the strategically located and mineral-rich island.
Greenland, a former colony and now a semi-autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, sits between the Arctic and North America and holds vast energy resources. Trump's refusal to rule out military or economic force to acquire it triggered a diplomatic crisis in January within NATO and forced Denmark and the island's government into intensive negotiations. Us To Open Two New Bases The agreement they reached will allow the US to expand its military footprint in Greenland, three people familiar with the matter have told Reuters.
In addition to the existing Pituffik Space Base, the deal is expected to open two new military sites: Narsarsuaq, a former Cold War airbase whose population has dwindled to just a few dozen, and Mestersvig, currently used by the Sirius Dog Sled Patrol, an elite Danish special forces unit. m. ET (1630 GMT) at the UN General Assembly in New York for the trilateral signing ceremony. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has said the agreement will place Arctic security under NATO's collective watch rather than leaving it to Washington and Copenhagen alone.
" Denmark has not responded to Trump's assertion but has said the agreement respects the kingdom's sovereignty and Greenland's right to self-determination. The text remains unpublished ahead of Tuesday's signing. It remains unclear whether the agreement amends a 1951 defence treaty that has been the legal basis for US presence, or operates as a new framework. The deal marks a retreat from Trump's earlier ambitions for an outright acquisition of Greenland, an island three times the size of Texas with a population of only 57,000, scattered along its rugged coastline.
But it represents a significant expansion of US military infrastructure on the island — the first major increase since the Cold War, when the US maintained 17 installations and over 10,000 personnel there. com Connect on LinkedIn: )