Danish PM says NATO agrees on a permanent Arctic presence around Greenland, reaffirming sovereignty after US pressure and a new defence pact review.
BRUSSELS: Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen stated that NATO allies support establishing a “permanent presence” in the Arctic, including around Greenland.
Frederiksen made the remarks at the start of a European Union summit in Brussels on Thursday.
“Everybody in NATO agrees about that, the Arctic states, but also other member states, that we need a permanent presence from NATO in the Arctic region, including around Greenland,” she said.
Her comments follow US President Donald Trump’s claim that a framework deal was reached with NATO chief Mark Rutte, causing him to back down from threats of force or tariffs over Greenland.
Details of that accord remain scant, with Trump making no progress toward gaining control of the autonomous Danish territory.
Frederiksen firmly stated that discussions about Denmark’s sovereignty over Greenland are not negotiable.
“It cannot be changed,” she said.
NATO confirmed after the talks that the alliance would increase security in the Arctic, a move Trump has justified by citing threats from Russia and China.
A source familiar with the discussions said Denmark and the US would also renegotiate a 1951 defence pact governing American troop deployments on Greenland.
“We said to the Americans a year ago that we can discuss our agreement on defence, but it has to be in the framework of us as a sovereign state,” Frederiksen explained.
The Danish leader emphasised the need for respectful cooperation between allies.
“I, of course, hope to find a political solution within the framework of democracy and how we cooperate as allies,” she said.
