President Donald Trump revealed few details Wednesday of a framework for a future deal with NATO over Greenland, but said it would include access to mineral rights for the U.S. and its European allies, as well as collaboration on the Golden Dome missile defense system.
"They're going to be involved in the Golden Dome, and they're going to be involved in mineral rights, and so are we," Trump told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
When asked how long the deal would last, Trump said, "Forever."
Trump ruled out using force to acquire Greenland and called for immediate negotiations on the semi-autonomous island's status during his address to the World Economic Forum earlier Wednesday.
Shortly thereafter, Trump said he reached a framework for a deal with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, adding that he would not impose tariffs on Denmark and other European countries that had been set to take effect Feb. 1. The European Union had halted a trade deal with the U.S. in response to Trump's tariff threat.
Trump declined to provide further details to CNBC, including whether the framework involved any degree of U.S. ownership of the Danish territory, describing the concept as complex.
Rutte said the issue of whether Greenland will remain with Denmark did not come up in his conversation with Trump, according to Reuters.
"It's a little bit complex, but we'll explain it down the line," he said.
However, the Daily Mail and The New York Times reported that the framework could involve granting the U.S. sovereignty over small pockets of Greenlandic land for military bases, similar to British bases in Cyprus.
The New York Times cited three senior officials familiar with the discussions, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Greenland provides strategic access to the Arctic, where China and Russia have expanded their geopolitical presence amid increased access to shipping lanes and natural resources.
The island is also rich in oil, gold, graphite, copper, iron and other rare-earth elements.
NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart said in a statement that further discussions would focus on ensuring Arctic security, including talks among Denmark, Greenland and the U.S. "aimed at ensuring that Russia and China never gain a foothold — economically or militarily — in Greenland," The Washington Post reported.
Trump's insistence that Greenland is a core U.S. national security interest has renewed focus on the existing U.S. military presence on the island.
At one point, the U.S. operated 17 bases in Greenland and stationed about 10,000 troops there, according to The Wall Street Journal. Today, fewer than 200 U.S. personnel remain at a single installation, Pituffik Space Base.
Pituffik, formerly known as Thule Air Base, was built in 1951. The northernmost U.S. military installation consists of barracks, hangars, fuel tanks and satellite-dish domes.
From a nearby mountain plateau, a massive trapezoid-shaped radar monitors for potential hostile missile launches. Behind the base, the vast ice sheet stretches for more than 600,000 square miles.
Under a longstanding treaty with Denmark, the U.S. has broad latitude to station troops and expand its number of bases on the island.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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