Trump to sign deal Tuesday that leaves Greenland in Danish hands

The deal will leave Greenland under Danish sovereignty, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said, framing it “a good agreement” that benefits all sides.

Donald Trump is set to sign a security deal on Tuesday with Denmark and Greenland to end a bitter dispute over the Arctic island, expanding Washington’s military role without granting the US the ownership or outright control the president once sought.

A signing ceremony to take place in connection with the UN General Assembly, where an agreement between Denmark, Greenland, and the USA will be signed, in Manhattan, New York, US. (Reuters)

The deal will leave Greenland under Danish sovereignty, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Monday, framing it “a good agreement” that benefits all sides. Full details have yet to be released.

“We are not giving up sovereignty, and I can guarantee that I will never do that as Danish prime minister,” she told local broadcasters. “It’s entirely possible to retain sovereignty while having closer cooperation on security and defense.”

Trump is scheduled to sign the agreement alongside Frederiksen and Greenland’s leader, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York at 10.30 a.m. local time on Tuesday, according to a statement from the government in Copenhagen.

The signing will cap months of negotiations aimed at ending a dispute over the semi-autonomous Danish territory that in January escalated into a major diplomatic crisis between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization members. The standoff was sparked by Trump’s repeated threats since taking office to annex Greenland or seize control of the island.

The US president on Friday announced a deal had been reached, saying on social media that it would give the US “permanent control over security” in Greenland, including giving Washington a say over foreign military activity and sensitive investments and expanding its military footprint on the island.

The US plans to reopen one military base in southern Greenland and establish a second site on the country’s east coast, Reuters reported on Monday, citing three unidentified people familiar with the matter.

The agreement comes after a series of setbacks for Trump, including prolonged fighting in the Middle East, no breakthrough in ending Russia’s war in Ukraine and persistent cost-of-living pressures for US voters ahead of the midterms.