Jeffrey Gettleman Maya Tekeli and Eric Schmitt
The American military is intensifying efforts to secure greater access to Greenland, a clear signal that President Trump’s interest in the enormous Arctic island has not waned.
The United States is negotiating with Denmark for access to three additional bases in Greenland — including two previously abandoned by Americans — which would mark the first U.S. expansion there in decades, according to a top Pentagon general, Gen. Gregory M. Guillot.
General Guillot, the head of U.S. Northern Command, told lawmakers in a congressional hearing in mid-March that the military wanted “increased access to different bases across Greenland as we look at the increasing threat and the strategic importance of Greenland.”
“I’m working with our department and others to try to develop more ports, more airfields, which leads to more options for our secretary and for the president, should we need them up in the Arctic,” General Guillot added.
The request places Denmark in a tricky spot. Greenland is a semi-automonous territory that has been part of the Danish kingdom for more than 300 years. President Trump, at the same time, has fixated on acquiring Greenland, and threatened to use force for months before relenting in January.
The Danish government has cited a 1951 Danish-American defense pact to push back against Mr. Trump’s threats, noting that the U.S. already has sweeping military access.
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