Trump threatened to invade Greenland in January, now his military commanders say they are in negotiations to secure more army bases in the Danish territory, which the US sees as strategically vital
08:16, 02 Apr 2026Updated 08:17, 02 Apr 2026
Trump has long demanded more military access to Greenland(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The US is pushing ahead with plans to secure more military access to Greenland. The Pentagon was said to be negotiating with Denmark for a “permanent presence” at three additional bases in the Danish island.
General Gregory Guillot, head of US Northern Command, told Congress last month that negotiations with Denmark are “moving ahead” and the US was seeking “increased access to different bases across Greenland.”
The US wants access to Narsarsuaq, a southern Greenland town with a deep-water port, and Kangerlussuaq in the southwest, which has a runway capable of handling large US aircraft. The third has not been publicly disclosed.
(Image: Getty Images)
A White House official told the Daily Mail the structure of the agreement is still being worked on, adding: “We are very optimistic that we’re on a good trajectory.”
It comes after Donald Trump previously claimed the US could invade Greenland to take over the island for security purposes.
The Orange Manbaby warned “Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China” and claimed Moscow and Beijing’s vessels regularly transit off its coast.
Danish soldiers increased their presence in the island in January amid Trump’s threats(Image: Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Ima)
The US currently has access to Pituffik Space Base, a remote missile defense installation staffed by a few hundred troops. Guillot told the Senate he wants broader access to bring special forces and Navy assets permanently to the island amid rising global tensions.
He said: “What we have now is access to a particular air base [Pituffik] in the northern part of Greenland which gives us some of the fighter and tanker capability and a lot of space capability.
“But we don’t have a permanent presence for [special operations forces] and then we don’t have a permanent presence for some of the maritime capabilities that I need.
US Vice President JD Vance at Pituffik Space Base last March(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
“I’m working with our department and others to try to develop more ports, more airfields, which leads to more options for our secretary and for the president, should we need them up in the Arctic.”
Both Narsarsuaq and Kangerlussuaq were American bases used during WWII and the Cold War before US forces abandoned them and returned them to local authorities.
A 1951 Danish-American defence agreement gives sweeping access to the US military in Greenland.
The US military’s Pituffik Space Base in Greenland(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Guillot told lawmakers: “We don’t really need a new treaty. It’s very comprehensive, and it’s frankly very favourable to our operations or potential operations in Greenland.”
But Fifa Peace Prize winner Trump has repeatedly threatened to annex the island and fully take control of it, despite Denmark being a Nato ally.
And he said on Wednesday he was considering pulling America out of the 32-strong alliance, which began in 1949, due to a lack of support for his war with Iran.
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