Ahead of UNGA Signing, Danish FM Says NATO Now Shares Arctic Responsibility for Greenland Deal

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, having travelled to New York overnight for the UN General Assembly, told reporters on September 21, 2026 that 'responsibility for security in the Arctic is not only Danish or American' and that it is now 'to a large extent' NATO 'that looks after the Arctic' — the clearest Danish attempt yet to reframe the pending US-Denmark-Greenland security agreement as a multilateral alliance commitment rather than a bilateral arrangement. Rasmussen declined to discuss the contents of the deal, which was expected to be formally signed 'on Tuesday' (September 22) on the UNGA sidelines, closing out the dispute that began with Trump's threats to acquire Greenland by force. Trump had maintained the agreement would give Washington 'permanent control' over Greenland's security; Denmark and Greenland had not directly rebutted that characterization but emphasized sovereignty guarantees. The full text of the agreement remained unpublished ahead of signing, and it remained unclear whether it would formally amend the 1951 US-Danish defense agreement governing American bases on the island.