The US will open two military bases in Greenland as part of a deal with Denmark and Greenland, Reuters has reported.
The agreement is expected to be signed on Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. However, its text has not yet been officially publicised.
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The move follows a tense, months-long standoff with Denmark and Greenland following US President Donald Trump’s repeated comments that Washington intended to annex the autonomous Danish territory, which is strategic for its location in the Arctic and its significant mineral resources, including rare-earth metals.
As a diplomatic row brewed last year, Trump refused to rule out a military invasion, causing fear among Greenlanders, the majority of whom reject US control according to polls.
Tensions peaked in January this year when European members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) alliance began deploying more troops to the island to demonstrate military readiness and to deter Washington.
Following talks with NATO chief Mark Rutte, Trump backed down, saying he would not invade the island but would, instead, work towards a deal. He also withdrew his threat to impose 10 percent trade tariffs on eight European nations objecting to the US’s attempts to acquire Greenland.
Greenland and Denmark then began negotiations with the US to de-escalate the crisis. Here’s what we know:
What’s the US-Greenland deal about?
On Friday, US President Donald Trump claimed the US had reached a deal with Denmark granting it “permanent control” over Greenland’s security “and all other needs”.
The deal allows the US a veto to prevent “adversaries” from establishing a military presence or making “sensitive investments” in Greenland without its approval, Trump said.
A US Department of State official cited by the BBC clarified that will mean non-NATO states will not be able to set up bases in Greenland and will be barred from “making investments in Greenland that could threaten the United States”.
Then, on Monday, news of the two new US bases emerged.
Over the weekend, Denmark and Greenland confirmed they had reached an agreement with the US that would be announced this week, but insisted that it would not compromise Greenland’s sovereignty.
In a post on Facebook, Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said, “The agreement recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our kingdom and the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination.”
On Monday, in advance of the deal’s signing, Nielsen added that it would be a “significant moment following a difficult period … I look forward to signing the agreement and taking the next step with our interests, our security, and respect for our country as the clear starting point.”
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen also sounded an optimistic note in a weekend statement.
“A time of uncertainty will hopefully give way to a binding agreement that strengthens security in the Arctic and the north Atlantic, and thereby our shared security within Nato Europe – while respecting the Danish kingdom’s red lines,” Rasmussen said.
Where will the two new bases be?
The US will re-establish one Cold War-era military base in southern Greenland, and set up another on the east coast under the coming deal, it has been reported.
The first base will be in Narsarsuaq, a settlement in southern Greenland whose population has dwindled to a few dozen people since the US closed its Bluie West One military base – also known as Narsarsuaq Air Base and Narsarsuaq Airport – in 1958.
The second base will be located in Mestersvig, a military outpost in the northeast of the territory that is currently used by the Sirius Dog Sled Patrol, a Danish special forces unit.
The US maintained a heavy military presence on the island during the Cold War when American nuclear bombers and nuclear early warning systems were based there. Some 150 troops remain permanently at the northern Pituffik Space Base monitoring for missiles.
What have the reactions been to the US deal?
Trump has argued that taking control of the island, which is on the most direct route between North America and Europe, is necessary to prevent Russia and China from ramping up their own presence in the Arctic, near the US’s northern border.
Analysts say that neither country has significant influence in the region. Nevertheless, the proposed deal stipulated that the US’s adversaries cannot similarly have any Greenland bases.
Russia, responding to the agreement, has said that it was not involved in discussions.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday that “at present, the issue of cooperation in the Arctic is not on the agenda. The Americans and other Arctic states are refusing to cooperate with Russia.”
China, meanwhile, has not commented.
Earlier, over the weekend, a NATO spokesperson told reporters that the alliance was on board with the deal and said it would “help advance security, stability and cooperation in this vital region”.
