Ownership over Greenland is "very important" to Donald Trump.
The American president makes this clear once again in an interview with the American newspaper The New York Times.
Here he explains why he needs to possess Greenland and why it is not sufficient to take advantage of the agreement that the US already has with Denmark on military access to the island in the Arctic.
- Because that is what I feel is psychologically necessary for success, says Trump.
Could be a choice between Nato and Greenland
He believes that ownership provides something that a lease agreement or a treaty cannot.
- Ownership gives you things and elements that you don't just get by signing a document, says the American president.
In the interview with The New York Times, Trump is also asked what he prioritizes the most: Ownership of Greenland or preserving NATO.
To this he replies that "it can be a choice", and adds that the defense alliance is fundamentally useless without the United States.
The issue of Nato is relevant because Greenland, as part of the Kingdom of Denmark, is a member of the defense alliance, as is the United States, and because the US administration has not ruled out the possibility of the US entering Greenland militarily.
Indicated military intervention as a possibility
A statement earlier this week indicated that the US administration sees a military intervention in Greenland as a real possibility.
Thus, the White House wrote that "the use of the US military is always an option available to the commander-in-chief".
As several times in the past, the White House emphasized that Greenland is "a national security priority" for Trump.
According to a defense agreement between the USA and Denmark from 1951, the USA is obliged - under NATO auspices - to help Denmark defend Greenland. At the same time, the agreement gives the US military free access to all of Greenland.
However, if the US is to establish military facilities in Greenland, it requires the approval of Denmark. The United States currently has one military base in Greenland - Pituffik Space Base, formerly known as Thule Base.
/Ritzau/
