USA and NATO agree on “Guantánamo model”

Dispute over Greenland

“Guantánamo model”: USA and NATO agree

Trump’s claims to Greenland overshadowed the world economic conference. Now the new deal between the USA and NATO raises questions.

Trump’s plans for Greenland have put the transatlantic relationship to a severe test. Initially, NATO stood behind Denmark and Greenland after Trump’s claims to ownership. Trump then announced punitive tariffs for some EU countries. The dispute threatened to escalate.

But now there should be an agreement between the USA and NATO. Both Greenland and the USA as well as the European NATO countries initially appeared cautious to confident. t-online clarifies the most important questions about the agreement.

Trump claimed ownership of Greenland on behalf of the United States during his first term in office. As justification, he repeatedly emphasized that Greenland was necessary for national security. Greenland is located in the Arctic and therefore in an important geopolitical location. Trump’s calculation: A high US military presence should deter other powers such as Russia and China in the region.

video | Putin speculates about Greenland purchase price

Another reason could be Greenland’s raw material reserves. There are large deposits of mineral resources such as gold and rare earths there. Greenland also has extensive oil and gas reserves. Trump wants to use the island to strengthen US national security and expand the country’s economic power.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that a common denominator was reached in talks with Trump at the World Economic Conference in Davos on Wednesday. He primarily refers to the joint protection of the Arctic: “One result of yesterday’s talks is to ensure that the Chinese and Russians do not have economic access or military access to Greenland, especially in Greenland,” said Rutte. He considers the starting point to be a “very good result”, but emphasized that there is still a lot to do. Both parties have agreed to work on the question of what NATO can do to protect the entire Arctic region.