National Defense

Trump Scores Major Greenland Win As Arctic Island Greenlights US Military Expansion

A shoreline in Greenland. (Screen Capture/PBS NOVA)

President Donald Trump secured a major victory in his push to expand American military power in the Arctic after Greenland approved a security agreement allowing the U.S. to build additional military bases on the island.

Greenland’s parliament voted 16-0 on Tuesday to ratify the agreement, which paves the way for two new American military bases and Trump’s proposed Golden Dome missile defense system, according to Reuters. The deal bolsters Washington’s strategic foothold in the Arctic while reaffirming Danish sovereignty over Greenland — though Denmark’s parliament must still approve the agreement before it takes effect.

This agreement comes after Trump formerly expressed desires to annex the world’s largest island.

“We ⁠must accept that peace and stability are no longer something we can ⁠take for granted,” Greenlandic Foreign Minister and former Prime Minister Mute Egede told lawmakers in the capital of Nuuk, Reuters reported.

Greenland’s location mainly inside the Arctic Circle has made it a region of strategic importance since World War II, according to SOF News. Its high latitude renders it able to detect missile launches from adversarial nations such as Russia and China early. It is also part of the Greenland-Iceland-United-Kingdom gap — a critical point for monitoring North Atlantic naval activities — and the Arctic Passage, a key area for commercial vessels. Greenland, as well as the broader Arctic region, is also rich in critical minerals.

The bill’s initial reading at the Danish Parliament is slated for Nov. 11, followed by a second reading and vote on Nov. 19.

The bill only requires ratification by Denmark and Greenland — as U.S. Senate approval is not necessary, Reuters noted.