Trump and Rutte reached an oral agreement on Greenland during their meeting in Davos on Wednesday, but so far no document has been produced mentioning a future agreement – people familiar with the leaders' conversation told CNN.
The leaders agreed to continue talks on updating the 1951 Greenland defense agreement between the U.S. and Denmark, the sources said. Under this defense cooperation agreement, US forces are stationed in Greenland.
The framework of the contract also assumes a guarantee that Russia and China will be excluded from any investments in Greenland. The agreement will also include strengthening NATO's role on the island.
What arrangements have Trump and Rutte made regarding Greenland?
Why didn't Rutte want official documents?
What caused confusion among NATO allies?
What goals does Trump hope to achieve regarding Greenland?
Two sources said a potential deal may also include a provision regarding increased US access to Greenland's natural resources, including minerals. However, Rutte on Thursday denied discussing the issue directly with Trump.
Rutte didn't want official documents. He had a reason for it
One of the people familiar with the course of the talks reported that Rutte did not want official documents to be prepared during his meeting with Trumpbecause he feared they might be leaked or that Trump himself might post them on social media. Earlier this week, the US president published a private message he received from Rutte on Truth Social.
As CNN noted, the lack of documents has caused confusion among NATO allies, who do not know what exactly was agreed. A document detailing the terms of the new agreement is to be developed at the next meeting of the working group of the US, Denmark and Greenland. According to one of the sources, such a meeting may take place next week in Washington.
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt stated that details of the agreement still need to be finalized by all parties involved and only after completing this work will they be made public.
“If this agreement is adopted, and President Trump very much hopes it will be, the U.S. will achieve all of its strategic goals in Greenland forever, at very little cost,” Leavitt stressed.
The Prime Minister of Greenland does not know the details
In turn, the Prime Minister of Greenland, commenting on the reports on the agreement regarding the island on Thursday, revealed that he did not know its details. — From what I know, this agreement was about the common goal that unites us: doing more for Arctic security. […] I don't know anything about minerals, he said.
