“A wise Danish politician once said that you can achieve almost anything if you are willing to let others take the credit…”
Danes mock Trump for ‘status quo’ Greenland deal
Mette Frederiksen has welcomed the agreement, which she says ‘recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity’ of Greenland and Denmark
Denmark has mocked Donald Trump for his Greenland deal, which commentators said amounted to a continuation of the status quo.
The US president celebrated the agreement in a surprise announcement on Friday evening, saying it would give Washington permanent control of security on the Arctic island and resolve “all of our many US concerns”.
The deal allows the US to build new military bases “as needed” in Greenland without first seeking Denmark’s permission, according to Fox News.
It also forbids adversaries of the US from making “sensitive investments” in the territory, including those related to undersea cables and critical minerals.
However, Danish commentators said the deal would not change much between the US and Greenland, where American bases are already located.
Henrik Dahl, a Danish member of the European Parliament for the Liberal Alliance, said that, while the full details were yet to be revealed, the agreement appeared to have changed little.
“A wise Danish politician once said that you can achieve almost anything if you are willing to let others take the credit,” said Mr Dahl. “So let us give Donald Trump the credit for something very close to the status quo. From a Danish and Greenlandic perspective, it could hardly be much better.”
The Danish government also welcomed the deal, stressing that it preserved Danish sovereignty of the island.
Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, insisted that the deal would “strengthen security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic area”, but did not address the specific elements of the agreement mentioned by Mr Trump.
In a statement, she said that “the agreement recognises the sovereignty and territorial integrity” of Greenland and Denmark, and that it upholds both peoples’ right “to self-determination”.
“Next week could be a good week – for Greenland, Denmark, and the United States,” said Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Denmark’s foreign minister.
“A time of uncertainty will hopefully give way to a binding agreement that strengthens security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic, and thereby our shared security within Nato and Europe – while respecting the [Danish] Kingdom’s red lines,” he added.
Analysts in Copenhagen pointed out that the current security arrangement, which dates back to 1951, already gives the US considerable scope to extend its security presence on the frozen island.
Marc Jacobsen, a researcher at the Royal Danish Defence College, said that the aspects Mr Trump was pitching as progress already existed in practice.
Mr Trump said the agreement would prevent adversaries of the US, specifically China and Russia, from setting up bases on the island. But Mr Jacobsen pointed out that Denmark had already blocked a Chinese company from buying a former military base in Greenland in 2016.
“Donald Trump gets out of it that he can appear as a winner. [As though] he has been a good businessman who has pushed Denmark and Greenland into something new,” Mr Jacobsen said.
Danish media responded with mockery, with one correspondent writing: “Shhh. Don’t tell Trump that it’s the Kingdom of Denmark that has prevailed.”
Torsten Jansen, a US commentator for broadcaster TV2, said that “even though Trump is trying to blare it out as a victory, it is, as I see it, a spectacular defeat”.
One Danish commentator noted that the only apparent change to the treaty was that US security involvement would no longer be tied to the existence of Nato but would continue indefinitely.
She added that it should be signed during the UN General Assembly next week, but parliamentary approval was still needed.
Mr Trump emphasised that “there will be NO COST to the United States”.
“This is a dream come true for the United States of America, one that is very important, historic, and special,” Mr Trump wrote on social media.
“At my direction, we worked with representatives of Denmark and Greenlandto 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,” he said.
Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, said that the deal “permanently and completely addresses [US] national security concerns in Greenland”.
He praised Mr Trump for securing the agreement “at zero cost to the US taxpayer”, and said it would ensure that Greenland would “forever be part of the strategic defence area of North America”.
In August, Greenland issued a “strong warning” to a US oil company linked to Mr Trump after it emerged that drilling equipment had been loaded onto the Arctic island without permission.
Locals had seen the equipment being hauled ashore in July. It was thought to be linked to a large oil-drilling project being funded by Greenland Energy, a Texas company set up in 2025, which has ties to Mr Trump.
Larry Swets, the firm’s chairman and a major shareholder, is understood to enjoy access to the US president’s inner circle, with his wife posting pictures from Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort earlier this year.
Mr Trump has made no secret of his plans for US expansion under his leadership, and has repeatedly expressed nostalgia for an era of US territorial gains in the 19th century.
He prompted international criticism in January 2025 when he failed to rule out the use of military force to seize control of Greenland, saying the US needed it “for national security purposes”.