Trump claims ‘total access’ Greenland deal, PM Nielsen says unaware of details

President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he has secured total and permanent US access to Greenland in a deal with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the Greenland structure is being worked on and will be amazing for the US. However, Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said he was still in the dark on many aspects of the deal. “Heading back to D.C. It was an incredible time in Davos. The Greenland structure is being worked on, and will be amazing for the U.S.A., and the Board of Peace is something that the world has never seen before. Very special. So many good things happening!” Trump said in his post.

Meanwhile, Denmark also insisted that its sovereignty over the island was not up for discussion.

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‘Ready to negotiate but sovereignty a red line’: Greenland PM

Greenland’s PM Nielsen told reporters in the capital, Nuuk, “I don’t know what there is in the agreement, or the deal, about my country.”

When asked about reports that Trump was seeking control of areas around US military bases in Greenland as part of a wider deal, he said, “We are ready to discuss a lot of things and we are ready to negotiate a better partnership and so on. But sovereignty is a red line.”

“We cannot cross the red lines. We have to respect our territorial integrity. We have to respect international law and sovereignty.”

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“It’s really being negotiated now, the details of it. But essentially, it’s total access. It’s—there’s no end, there’s no time limit,” Trump told Fox Business Network in an interview from Davos.

‘Nobody but Greenland and Denmark can make deal’: PM

Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said that nobody other than Greenland and Denmark have the mandate to make deals or agreements about Greenland.

“We are ready to cooperate more in economics, but that’s something we have to talk about in mutual respect,” he said.

“I want a respectful and good dialogue where we can discuss that kind of things,” he said when asked whether he would welcome increased US military presence. The PM pointed out that there is already a defence agreement with the US in place.

“We are a trusted ally, have been for many years. The Kingdom of Denmark and the United States stood side by side for many years, also in tough times, and that’s what we need to bring back,” he added.

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Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Denmark wants to “find a solution” and has asked NATO to be more active in the Arctic region, and “everybody in NATO agrees with that.”

“We are willing to work together with the US, of course, as we have always done about security, but our red lines that are also our democratic rules, cannot be discussed.”

‘Europe’s unity worked against Trump’s threats’: Macron

France’s Emmanuel Macron said the emergency summit of EU leaders on Greenland in Brussels demonstrates the unity in support of Denmark, its territorial integrity and sovereignty.

“When Europe is united, strong and reacts quickly, things return to normal and calm,” he says.

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Macron added that Europe needs to stay “vigilant” and continue acting in “united manner,” showing that it has “instruments at its disposal” if threatened to “command respect.”

He also says France is open to participating in more Nato missions, presumably in the Arctic.