The US is holding regular talks with Denmark to expand its military presence in Greenland, the BBC reports. Talks between the two countries have been progressing in recent months.
US officials are seeking to open three new bases in the southern part of the territory, a semi-autonomous Danish territory, as they work to resolve a diplomatic crisis sparked by President Donald Trump's threat to seize Greenland by force. Trump has said the US must take control of Greenland to prevent it from falling into the hands of China or Russia. He has not ruled out the use of force to achieve this goal.
A White House official said the administration was very optimistic that the talks were moving in the right direction. The Danish Foreign Ministry confirmed that talks with the United States were underway, without giving details. Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said that talks with the United States had "taken some steps in the right direction."
American officials have proposed an agreement under which the three new military bases would be formally designated as sovereign US territory. The bases would be in southern Greenland and would focus primarily on monitoring potential Russian and Chinese maritime activity in an area of the North Atlantic Ocean between Greenland, Iceland and the United Kingdom.
The two countries have not yet formally agreed on anything, and the final number of bases could change. One of the new bases is likely to be located in Narsarsuaq, on the site of a former US military base that housed a small airport. Any other new military bases would also likely be located in places in Greenland that have existing infrastructure, such as airports or ports.
During the talks, U.S. officials have not raised the issue of taking control of the Arctic island. The talks are limited to a small working group of officials in Washington who have made progress out of the spotlight while the administration has been absorbed in the war in Iran. The delicate diplomatic effort is being led by Michael Needham, a senior State Department official tasked with crafting a deal that satisfies Trump while respecting Denmark’s red lines on protecting its borders.
The U.S. and Denmark have held at least five meetings since mid-January. During these meetings, Needham is usually accompanied by one or two U.S. officials from the State Department or the National Security Council. Trump’s special envoy for Greenland, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry, is not involved in the talks and has been largely absent from the diplomatic process.
The United States currently has one military base in Greenland. The Pitufik Space Base is located in northwest Greenland. It monitors missiles for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) but is not configured to conduct maritime surveillance.
Behind closed doors, negotiators are trying to reach a compromise within the framework of an existing decades-old security agreement between the United States and Denmark. The 1951 pact gives the United States broad leeway to expand its military operations in Greenland. The Danish government must approve any U.S. military expansion in the territory, but Denmark has historically supported American military operations there and has never rejected a U.S. request to expand its presence, Arctic security experts said.