Trump says US has ‘permanent control’ of Greenland security: Does it?

Published On 19 Sep 202619 Sep 2026.

Key points

• As it "strengthens our common security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic Area", denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen remarked it is "great for NATO and Europe".
• According to Denmark, the accord is anticipated to be signed during next week's United Nations General Assembly session in New York.
• United States President Donald Trump claims the US has reached a accord with Denmark granting it "permanent control" over Greenland's security "and all other needs".
• Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen remarked it "recognises Greenland's interests" and is "to the benefit of us all".
• Trump's earlier threats to seize control of Greenland were met with high resistance on the island of 56, 000 individuals.

For context, the announcement comes more than a year after the US president threatened to seize the self-governing Arctic territory. It is part of Denmark. Those threats roiled the NATO security alliance that Washington and Copenhagen are part of.

According to Denmark, the accord is anticipated to be signed during next week's United Nations General Assembly session in New York. Copenhagen has stressed that it retains sovereignty over Greenland, and this accord will still need to be ratified in the Danish and Greenland parliaments.

Here's what we know regarding the agreement and what it could mean for the US and Greenland. What's in the accord?

For context, the official text has yet to be published. But according to Trump, the accord gives the US permanent control over Greenland's security and "all other needs", at no cost to the US.

In practice, the accord bars US adversaries from establishing a military presence or making "sensitive investments" in Greenland without US approval, stated Trump.

For context, a US Department of State official cited by the BBC remarked the agreement will mean non-NATO states won't be able to set up bases in Greenland and will be barred from "making investments in Greenland that could threaten the United States".

According to The official, means China and Russia won't be able to build bases or send troops to Greenland, and that those states would be blocked from investing "in sensitive sectors".

Nevertheless, Mikkel Olesen, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies, informed Al Jazeera that it is unlikely to be a major concession since "the Danes and Greenlanders never wished for Russia or China to have bases in Greenland."

Nevertheless, it is unclear whether other countries could similarly be labelled "adversaries" to the US going forward, subjecting them to these restrictions.

Trump called the accord an "'Infinite Life' Agreement", meaning "it never ends".

In practice, the State Department official additionally stated the agreement gives the US the right to build more military sites on the island without Greenland or Denmark approving. According to the official, the accord would remain in force even if Greenland were to become an independent state going forward.

There was no specific mention of potential US mining rights in Greenland. It has a rich deposit of rare-earth minerals, including zinc, iron, uranium and graphite, that are probable to interest Trump. These minerals are highly sought after and are applied in the manufacture of hundreds of technological products, from smartphones to fighter jets.

Nevertheless, some observers think this could be what Trump means by his mention of "sensitive investments".

For context, the US president has sought to expand the US's global access to rare-earth metals, especially as China, a global leader in the technology, AI and renewables industries with 60 percent of the world's known deposits of these minerals in its territory, restricts their exports. What have Greenland and Denmark remarked?

Greenland and Denmark acknowledged the accord on Friday, but neither provided specific details regarding its terms. They remarked the agreement would be unveiled next week.

Olesen stressed that details of the accord remain unclear and that available information should be taken "with a grain of salt" as most of it has so far come from the US side. Does the accord provide the US ownership of Greenland? No, it does not meet Trump's previously stated objective of "ownership".

Denmark's Frederiksen remarked the agreement "recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and the Greenlandic people's right to self-determination".

Olesen remarked the agreement could be positive for Greenland and Denmark as it "has the potential to end the crisis" caused by Trump's insistence on acquiring Greenland last year, without sacrificing sovereignty.

Trump's earlier threats to seize control of Greenland were met with high resistance on the island of 56, 000 individuals. A January 2025 poll discovered that 85 percent of Greenlanders resisted becoming part of the US. What military rights does the US already have in Greenland?

In practice, a substantial number. Under a 1951 treaty, the US has broad overflight and basing rights on the island.

Along with giving the US the right to build bases and maintain personnel, the treaty additionally stipulates that the US can "control landings, takeoffs, anchorages, moorings, movements, and operation of ships, aircraft, and waterborne craft".

As part of the treaty, the US at present operates a Space Force base in a remote part of northwestern Greenland – the Pituffik Space Base. It has more than 100 personnel stationed there. What would actually change under this new agreement?

That largely remains to be seen. Trump remarked the US will "immediately" commence building up a sizeable military presence on Greenland. Nevertheless, the US already had the right to build bases and send personnel there under the 1951 treaty.

Imran Bayoumi, a former Pentagon official, informed the Reuters news agency that it would be new if the US could now build bases unilaterally, but "it seems that Washington could have achieved a lot of these ⁠objectives through diplomacy and dialogue without straining the broader US-NATO relationship."

Trump has additionally stated the US will backing Greenlanders with "development and construction", without elaborating.

Richard Weitz, a fellow at the NATO Defense College, informed Al Jazeera the agreement "defuses perhaps one of the most severe sources of internal tension" within NATO.

While Trump "backed down and settled for less" than he sought with respect to Greenland, he still "got pretty much everything he wanted, except formal annexation", continued Weitz.

For now, trump says US has 'permanent control' of Greenland security: Does it? Remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.