THE NEW YORK TIMES: American and NATO officials have discussed giving the United States sovereignty over U.S. military bases in Greenland. The Danes don’t seem to like that.
Danish officials pushed back on Thursday against any talk of compromising on the sovereignty of Greenland amid confusion over what kind of deal NATO leaders may have struck with President Trump over the future of the Arctic island.
“We can negotiate on everything political; security, investments, economy. But we cannot negotiate on our sovereignty,” Mette Frederiksen, Denmark’s prime minister, said in a statement on Thursday about Greenland.
Greenland has been part of the Danish kingdom for more than 300 years, and “only Denmark and Greenland themselves can make decisions on issues concerning Denmark and Greenland,” Ms. Frederiksen said. It is not clear whether Denmark’s position could scuttle any possible agreement over Greenland that Mr. Trump said he had reached with Mark Rutte, NATO’s secretary general, on Wednesday evening.
Mr. Trump had been insisting that the United States take over the island, despite resistance from Denmark and Greenland. He did not reveal the details of a possible breakthrough though he called it “the ultimate long term deal.” » | Jeffrey Gettleman, Maya Tekeli and Amelia Nierenberg | Jeffrey Gettleman and Amelia Nierenberg reported from London, and Maya Tekeli from Copenhagen. | Thursday, January 22, 2026
