US President Donald Trump has secured a framework agreement with NATO to establish sovereign base areas in Greenland, according to reports from the World Economic Forum in Davos. The deal, agreed with NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte on Wednesday evening, would grant the United States control over parts of the Arctic territory using a model similar to Britain’s military bases in Cyprus.
The Telegraph reports that the arrangement eases Danish fears of outright US annexation while giving Trump a path to expand American presence in the mineral-rich region. Under the proposed framework, the US would operate military bases as sovereign US territory and conduct intelligence operations, training, and potentially mining for rare earth minerals without requiring Danish permission.
Trump hailed the agreement in comments to reporters Wednesday: «It’s a deal that people jumped at, really fantastic for the USA, gets everything we wanted, including especially real national security and international security.» He declined to explain the terms in detail but acknowledged the ownership issue was “little complex.”
Million-Dollar Proposal
Separately, the Daily Mail reports Trump is considering paying each of Greenland’s roughly 57,000 residents $1 million to facilitate the territory’s acquisition. The proposal would carry an estimated total cost of £42.5 billion – a fraction of the US defense budget of about £595 billion.
Speaking at the Davos summit, Trump described Greenland as «cold and poorly located» but strategically vital. He framed the potential acquisition as fair compensation for decades of US support to Europe: «It’s a very small ask compared to what we have given them for many, many decades.»