Pentagon negotiates base access in Greenland, locals voice opposition

The Pentagon is negotiating with Denmark to gain access to three additional sites in Greenland, signaling renewed US interest in the Arctic island, officials say. Several Greenlandic residents have voiced opposition to the plan, The New York Times reports.

General Gregory M. Guillot, head of US Northern Command, told lawmakers in a congressional hearing in mid-March that the military seeks “increased access to different bases across Greenland as we look at the increasing threat and the strategic importance of Greenland.” He added, “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.”

The proposed expansion would mark the first significant US footprint increase on the island in decades. The sites under consideration include Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland, offering a deepwater port, and Kangerlussuaq in the southwest, which features a long runway capable of accommodating large aircraft. Both previously hosted US bases during World War II and the Cold War but were returned to Danish and Greenlandic authorities in the 1950s and 1990s, respectively. Much of the infrastructure has been dismantled, though both locations maintain small operational airports.

Lt. Comdr. Teresa C. Meadows, a spokeswoman for Northern Command, confirmed that military planners are studying the sites for “special operations soldiers and maritime capabilities.” The Pentagon has not specified how many troops might be stationed there.

The expansion relies on a 1951 Danish-American defense agreement, updated in 2004, which grants the United States broad access to Greenland. General Guillot emphasized, “We don’t really need a new treaty. It’s very comprehensive, and it’s frankly very favorable to our operations or potential operations in Greenland.” Scholars note that while Denmark and Greenland can technically reject US plans, doing so could provoke Washington to claim the island as a security risk.

Greenlanders, the majority of whom are Indigenous Inuit, have expressed unease about the proposals. “Many people don’t want more military in Greenland—but if that’s what they decide, there’s nothing we can do,” said Anso Lauritzen, who operates a sled dog center. Retired Nuuk resident Agnetha Mikka Petersen echoed the sentiment: “I’m not happy about it.”

By Vafa Guliyeva