The president wrote that he had entered into an agreement with Denmark and Greenland.
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on July 21, 2026. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday announced that the United States entered into a security agreement with Denmark and Greenland to control security for the world’s largest island.
The agreement would give the United States “permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland,” he wrote on Truth Social, a move the president described as one that would address the United States’ concerns.
“At my direction, we worked with representatives of Denmark and Greenland to guarantee that the United States will FOREVER have the complete ability to do what is necessary in Greenland in order to secure and defend the security of Greenland, and the United States of America,” the president’s post read.
“Additionally, from now on, no U.S. adversary can EVER have a base in Greenland, have a military presence in Greenland, or make sensitive investments in Greenland, without our express written approval.”
The deal blocks China, Russia, and other non-NATO nations from setting up military bases or placing troops in Greenland, said Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday in an interview with Fox News.
Describing Greenland as “forever” a “part of the strategic defense area of North America,” Rubio said that the deal will now “exclude any adversary” from placing its forces near the island or in its surrounding areas. “This deal permanently and completely addresses our national security concerns in Greenland.”
Trump’s Friday social media post added that the United States will now start the process of implementing a military presence on the island and will work with residents of Greenland on its development.
Elaborating, Trump said that previous American presidents have known the strategic importance of Greenland, a semi-autonomous island territory that has long been controlled by Denmark.
“This solution is a great one for the United States of America, Denmark, Greenland, and all of our Allies,” his post said. “We look forward to working with the wonderful people of Denmark and Greenland toward a magnificent future with respect to this large, and highly strategic, parcel of land. We will be very protective of it!”
Greenland, Denmark, and the United States expect to sign the agreement next week with the United Nations General Assembly. Once signed, the pact will go through the necessary parliamentary procedures to become official.
Premier of Greenland Jens-Frederik Nielsen said the agreement would benefit all nations.
“It is gratifying that we are about to enter into an agreement that ensures and strengthens the security of Greenland, and the Kingdom of Denmark, the United States and the Western alliance,” Nielsen said in a statement Friday. “The agreement recognizes Greenland’s interests and our place in international cooperation. It is to the benefit of us all.”
Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen was also pleased with the outcome that provides Greenlanders with rights over their own country, she said.
“I am pleased that there is a prospect of a good agreement for Greenland, the Kingdom of Denmark and the United States,” Frederiksen said. “An agreement that strengthens our common security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic area and is therefore also good for NATO and Europe. And an agreement that at the same time recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and the right of the Greenlandic people to self-determination.”
Starting last year, Trump had said that he wanted the United States to acquire Greenland from Denmark as a territory, a proposal that was shot down by Danish and Greenland officials. Trump at one point earlier this year warned that Denmark, a member of the European Union and NATO, could face a 25 percent import tax on goods unless it ceded the island to the United States.
Earlier this month, the European Union signed a declaration that would invest 200 million euros ($229 million) into Greenland as part of a partnership as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited the island’s capital, Nuuk.
“Greenland can count on the EU. That was my message during my last visit. Today, I am back to deliver the real results of our close cooperation. With a new EU-Greenland Partnership package, worth €200 million,” she said in a statement on Sept. 7. “This will create new opportunities and a strong and engaged EU in both Greenland and the Arctic. Because Greenland is a strategic ally and a trusted friend.”
The governments of Denmark and Greenland have not yet publicly responded to Trump’s comment.
Other details about the deal were not provided by either Rubio or Trump on Friday. It’s not clear if Greenland could be rolled into North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which is a joint security organization operated by the United States and Canada, based in Colorado, that identifies and tracks adversarial warplanes.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday.