Here’s what to know about the high-stakes agreement, what it means for Greenland’s sovereignty, and if it stands to end the standoff over the island.
What do we know about Trump’s Greenland deal?
Trump has stressed that the agreement gives Washington “permanent control” over Greenland’s security, concerns over which he has positioned at the center of his campaign for U.S. to control the island. “World peace is at stake,” he claimed, earlier this year, insisting that “China and Russia want Greenland, and there is not a thing that Denmark can do about it.”
The new agreement ensures that no American “adversary” can establish a base in Greenland, have a military presence on the island, or make “sensitive investments” in the territory without written approval from the U.S.
The agreement, according to a State Department official, establishes “permanent” guarantees that “only the U.S. and our allies can make sensitive investments in Greenland, eliminating the previous status quo in which adversaries have been investing in Greenland’s sensitive sectors without investment screening.” Furthermore, China and Russia are explicitly prohibited from having a base in Greenland and cannot send troops to Greenland.