US, Denmark, Greenland Sign Arctic Security Deal Allowing Expanded US Military Presence

The United States, Denmark and Greenland signed a trilateral security agreement on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, allowing expanded US military deployment in Greenland without transferring sovereignty over the island, easing a months-long diplomatic standoff. Under the deal, Washington may expand Pituffik Space Base in the northwest and establish two new defense areas at Narsarsuaq in the south and Mestersvig in the east. Additional bases may follow with tripartite consent. President Trump said the agreement grants the US "permanent control" over Greenland's security needs, though the island remains under Danish administration. The accord has no termination date and would survive Greenland independence, provided Greenland joins NATO and assumes Denmark's obligations. It bars non-NATO military facilities and restricts foreign investment in critical infrastructure and resource extraction. The deal requires ratification by Danish and Greenlandic parliaments. The US currently stations about 200 troops at Pituffik. The agreement marks the largest US military infrastructure expansion in Greenland since the Cold War.