Greenland parliament approves trilateral security deal with the United States and Denmark

Greenland's parliament has approved a trilateral security agreement with Denmark and the United States, formalising a deal signed in September by the three leaders. Lawmakers passed the measure 16-0 on Tuesday, with seven abstentions, in a vote that underscores the island's growing strategic role in the Arctic and North Atlantic. The agreement comes after months of negotiations and follows a period of heightened tension over Greenland's future and its resource potential.

The deal was signed in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly by US President Donald Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen. Greenlandic Foreign Minister Mute Egede said the ratification was an important step for the self-governing territory. He said the process had been difficult, but that Greenland had stood by its principles, chosen dialogue and taken responsibility for its interests.

The agreement paves the way for more US bases on Greenland and allows Washington to modernise and expand its activities at the Pituffik Space Base in northwest Greenland. It also states that Greenland will remain under Danish control, while still applying if the island eventually chooses independence. The text says it will only enter into force once the necessary parliamentary processes in the Kingdom of Denmark, in conjunction with Greenland, have been completed.

The vote matters because Greenland sits between Europe and North America and has become increasingly important in security planning for the Arctic. The island is the world's largest and has a population of about 57,000, making decisions about defence and foreign policy especially sensitive. The agreement also reflects wider interest in the region's resources, which have been part of the political debate around Greenland's future.

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The ratification follows months of behind-the-scenes negotiations and comes after earlier tensions linked to Trump's repeated threats to seize the island. Greenlanders have largely rejected US control in opinion polls, according to the report, and Trump's refusal last year to rule out military action had caused concern on the island. The deal now moves to Denmark's parliament, which is expected to debate it later this month, while no approval is required from the US Senate.

What remains unclear is how quickly the Danish parliamentary process will move and how the agreement will be implemented in practice. The final legal steps are still pending, and the timing of any expansion at Pituffik Space Base has not been set out. The broader question is how the arrangement will shape Greenland's security ties while the island continues to debate its long-term political future.

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