Different Interpretations of the Greenland Deal
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Trump calls the Greenland deal a historic real estate transaction, but according to a US expert, these remarks are primarily aimed at an American audience.
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Shortly after the three heads of government—Donald Trump, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and Mette Frederiksen—signed the new security agreement between the US, Greenland, and Denmark, Trump once again turned his attention to Greenland via his own channels.
Recently, during a campaign rally in Dalton, the American president described the agreement as “probably the biggest real estate deal ever made.”
Last week, the president also remarked that Greenland is now something the US can “put on its plate.”
That same week, Trump announced on his social media platform, Truth Social, that “preparations are underway for an extensive exploration of oil, gas, and minerals in our new and beautiful Greenland.”
According to Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard, a senior researcher in US foreign policy at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS), these statements are primarily directed at an American audience.
“Trump needs to sell the deal domestically to his base and portray it as something more significant than it actually is. He wants to turn it into something that aligns with his original desire to gain control and ownership over Greenland,” he says.
At the same time, the senior researcher emphasizes that Trump’s statements do not align with the content of the agreement.
In fact, Greenland has sovereign authority to decide whether to grant permission for the extraction of the country’s natural resources.
“The agreement is important to Trump because it allows him to craft a narrative that the US has rights of control and unrestricted access. That is, after all, precisely what he originally wanted,” says Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard.
Disagreements Could Lead to Conflict
According to the researcher, the president’s remarks could signal future disagreements and conflicts when the agreement is put into practice.
“When American companies request permission to extract natural resources, and if the Greenlandic administration rejects some of these applications, it could lead to conflicts where Trump might attempt to exert pressure,” he says.
Even though the agreement is set out in black and white, Trump’s statements create uncertainty regarding whether he might make further demands, assesses Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard.
“There is an agreement that is very clear on paper, yet there are differing interpretations of what it entails. As long as Donald Trump is president, one can assume that the US will attempt to exert pressure to ensure its own interpretation of the agreement prevails—regardless of what is written on paper,” he says.
According to Rasmus Sinding Søndergaard, this means that Greenland and Denmark must hold the Americans to what has been agreed upon.
“Just because Trump talks about doing one thing or another, it does not necessarily translate into action. After all, there is an agreement that sets out quite clear parameters for what the US can do and how it can be done,” he says.
The agreement underwent its first reading in Greenland’s Parliament on October 12. It has now been referred to the Parliament’s Committee on Foreign and Security Policy for further consideration.
Members of the Folketing (the Danish Parliament) are also set to review the agreement. The first reading in the Folketing will take place on Thursday, November 12.
Source: KNR (in Danish)