Greenland Agreement

A term collectively referring to the framework of security, resource, and autonomy-related consultations among Denmark, Greenland, and the United States over Greenland, a key Arctic strategic point.

Greenland Agreement

Overview

The Greenland Agreement is a term collectively referring to a series of security, diplomatic, and resource cooperation frameworks concluded or discussed among the Kingdom of Denmark, the Greenland Self-Government, the United States, and other major countries concerning Greenland, a strategic point in the North Atlantic and Arctic region. No treaty by that single name exists separately; rather, individual agreements such as the 1951 Greenland Defense Agreement, the 2008 Ilulissat Declaration, and the 2009 Greenland Self-Government Act, together with the purchase and annexation debates since 2019, are grouped as one cluster of issues and referred to in this way.

Main Content

Background: Why Greenland?

Greenland is the world's largest island, with an area of about 2,166,000 km² and a population of about 56,000. As a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark, it obtained home rule in 1979 and greatly expanded its autonomous powers through the 2009 Self-Government Act, but final responsibility for foreign affairs and defense still lies in Copenhagen. Geographically, it lies at the crossroads connecting North America and Europe, and since the Cold War it has been treated as a key outpost of the Atlantic defense line (the GIUK Gap). Added to this are possible deposits of critical minerals including rare earths, uranium, and oil and gas, and as climate change increases the commercial feasibility of the Arctic and Northwest Passages, its geopolitical value has risen sharply.

The 1951 Greenland Defense Agreement

On April 27, 1951, Denmark and the United States concluded the Greenland Defense Agreement under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) framework. Under this agreement, the United States secured the right to operate military facilities in Greenland, and Thule Air Base in the northwest served as a key base for ballistic missile early warning and space surveillance. In 2020, the base was renamed Pituffik Space Base and reorganized under the U.S. Space Force. Entering the 2020s, the United States and Denmark have continued supplementary consultations over the terms of base operations and cost-sharing for investment.

The 2008 Ilulissat Declaration

In May 2008, the five Arctic coastal states—Denmark, Canada, Norway, Russia, and the United States—met in Ilulissat, Greenland, and adopted the so-called Ilulissat Declaration. The declaration is a document affirming the principles of resolving Arctic Ocean disputes within the framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and ruling out military conflict, and it is regarded as a basic norm for disputes over resource jurisdiction in the waters around Greenland.

The 2009 Greenland Self-Government Act

The Self-Government Act, which took effect in 2009, established Greenlandic as the official language, transferred the right to manage subsoil resources to the self-government, and left open the possibility of an independence process through a referendum. However, because the subsidy received from Denmark decreases once resource development revenues exceed a certain level, the fact that large-scale mineral development is directly tied to independence discussions is a key variable in Greenlandic politics.

The 2019 Purchase Proposal and Aftermath

In 2019, U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned the possibility of purchasing Greenland, bringing the issue to global attention. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen at the time dismissed it as 'inappropriate,' and the Greenland Self-Government also made clear its position that 'Greenland is not for sale.' In the same year, the United States and Greenland concluded a memorandum of understanding on mineral resource cooperation, among other working-level cooperation that proceeded separately.

Recent Developments

With Trump's reelection in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, the Greenland issue rose to the forefront again. Around his inauguration in early 2025, the U.S. administration publicly emphasized Greenland's strategic importance, and remarks suggesting that military and economic means were not excluded drew strong backlash from Copenhagen and Nuuk (the seat of the Greenland Self-Government). Denmark announced additional defense budgets and the introduction of surveillance assets to strengthen Arctic defense capabilities, and the European Union and major countries such as Germany and France also sent messages supporting Greenland's autonomy and territorial integrity. In the Greenlandic general election held in March 2025, debate over the pace of resource development and the timing of independence emerged as a key agenda item, and since then the self-government has been voicing its own position more strongly as an actor in external cooperation. Meanwhile, as companies from the United States, the EU, China, South Korea, and Japan continue exploration and investment consultations aimed at diversifying supply chains for critical minerals such as rare earths and uranium, the Greenland Agreement is becoming a complex negotiating arena in which security, resources, climate, and shipping route issues are intertwined. Experts expect future discussions to unfold around four axes: ① readjustment of the terms of the defense agreement, ② mineral development and environmental standards, ③ indigenous rights and an independence roadmap, and ④ norms for navigation through the Arctic route. In particular, given that many Greenlanders sympathize with independence but worry about maintaining living standards and welfare, the common assessment is that no agreement can gain legitimacy without a referendum and the consent of the self-government.