US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has welcomed the agreement reached with Denmark on Greenland’s security, stressing that it will allow Washington to expand its military presence on the island according to defense needs.
Speaking to Fox News, Rubio described the deal as “permanent” and said it does not include an expiration date. According to the US secretary of state, the agreement is directly linked to US national security interests and the defense of the Arctic.
“It is permanent, it is forever, because this agreement has no expiration date,” Rubio said, highlighting Greenland’s strategic importance for monitoring Arctic maritime routes.
The secretary of state explained that Washington and Copenhagen will be able to promote new investments on the island under the agreement. In his view, the cooperation will help strengthen the security of Greenland and Denmark while preventing companies from other countries, particularly China, from gaining a strategic foothold in the territory.
Rubio pointed to the construction of ports by Chinese companies in different parts of the world as an example. In his view, such infrastructure can take on military significance if it is subsequently used by a country’s naval forces.
“It allows us to begin a process of investment together with Denmark,” the secretary of state said, arguing that action is needed to prevent Chinese interests from establishing a strategic presence in Greenland.
The US secretary of state also argued that several previous US presidents had recognized Greenland’s geographical importance, but credited Donald Trump’s administration with taking steps that, in his view, have allowed the issue to move forward more effectively.
The agreement comes amid growing US attention to the Arctic’s strategic importance, both in terms of security and because of the region’s maritime routes and geographical position.
