Description: US President Donald Trump alongside the prime ministers of Denmark and Greenland, Mette Frederiksen and Jens Frederik Nielsen signed and officially concluded the US dispute over Greenland. The agreement stipulates expansion of the US military presence on the island through two major projects in Narsarsuaq in the south and Mestersvig in the east, where radar and unmanned vehicle installations are expected to be developed. The agreement also states that all US craft, including planes and vessels, would gain exclusive landing and undersea rights in all of Greenland including its territorial waters. Conclusively, the agreement doesn’t include any concrete information regarding investment and resource extraction, however, it states that it has no expiration date and can be amended by mutual consent.
Impact: The agreement likely sets the basis for renewed political tensions in the long – term in case the US wants to unilaterally expand its jurisdiction over decisions regarding additional military bases, military equipment production sites or resource extraction. The new agreement highly likely indicates that both Denmark and Greenland outmaneuvered the US diplomatically in the short – term by agreeing to military base expansion, while protecting the sovereignty of Greenland and Denmark’s exclusive control over the island. The agreement also likely leaves a huge diplomatic gap and maintains a mistrust between Europe and the US, since the question of Greenland was the subject of diplomatic tensions for more than a year. The US is unlikely to press further concessions from Denmark and Greenland in the short – term. The fact that the US has prevalence in Greenland’s territorial waters and undersea rights could be the subject of renewed negotiations in terms of investments and economic involvement in the long – term.