Donald Trump says the Greenland agreement gives the U.S. permanent control over security and all other needs
Donald TrumpPresident of the United States, in a post on his Truth Social account, cross-posted to his X account
In a Truth Social post announcing an agreement with Denmark and Greenland, President Donald Trump said it gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, at no cost to the United States. He wrote that the United States will forever have the complete ability to do what is necessary there to secure and defend Greenland and the United States. The text of the agreement has not been published, so this record documents his description of it, not its provisions.
“I am pleased to announce that the United States of America has entered into an Agreement with The Kingdom of Denmark, and Greenland, that gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns. There will be NO COST to the United States! At my direction, we worked with representatives of Denmark and Greenland to guarantee that the United States will FOREVER have the complete ability to do what is necessary in Greenland in order to secure and defend the security of Greenland, and the United States of America.”
Original text
Original post
Reporting
Reporting
Other statements by Donald Trump in this case
- Trump calls Greenland 'our new and beautiful Greenland' and says exploration will beginLater: Defended or excused
- Trump tells a Perry, Georgia, rally that Denmark gave the United States GreenlandLater: Defended or excused
- Trump says the United States has Greenland now on an unlimited basisLater: Defended or excused
Where this statement fits
Trump’s “permanent control” description of the announced U.S.-Denmark-Greenland security agreement
On September 18, 2026, President Donald Trump announced an agreement with Denmark and Greenland that he said gives the United States “permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland.” Danish and Greenlandic officials initially described an expected agreement and emphasized sovereignty and self-determination. On September 22, the White House published an agreement text dated that day. It reaffirms Denmark’s sovereignty and Greenland’s right to self-determination; provides for U.S. defense areas and access under stated procedures; bars non-NATO states from establishing military installations unless the parties agree otherwise; and has no end date. The text says it enters into force only after diplomatic notice of necessary parliamentary procedures. The dispute remains over how Trump’s “permanent control” description compares with the document’s terms.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
Original post on Truth Social (@realDonaldTrump). Cited from the trumpstruth.org archive (status 41803), which reproduces the full text, shows the original post date 'Friday, September 18, 2026, 05:18 pm EDT', the Truth Social status ID 117294126158197822 and the original URL, and records a capture at 7:15 AM EDT on September 19. We could not read the original post on Truth Social. The identical text was posted on X at 8:12 PM EDT (next source). After the quoted span the post adds that from now on no U.S. adversary can have a base, military presence or sensitive investments in Greenland without the United States' 'express written approval', and calls the deal an 'Infinite Life' Agreement; those sentences are outside the quotation but in the same post.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Original post
About this source
The text is identical, after normalizing quotation marks and whitespace, to the 5:18 PM EDT Truth Social post and adds no wording.
Reporting
About this source
Fox News Digital exclusive. The page gives the same published and modified time, 2026-09-18T17:19:56-04:00, so the text was not revised after publication. Used only for its publication time, for Rubio's statement and for the sentence about Trump's earlier arguments. The article's account of the agreement's terms rests on unnamed U.S. officials and is not relied on here.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
Published 2026-09-18 22:37 UTC (6:37 PM EDT) and last modified 2026-09-19 08:15 UTC (4:15 AM EDT). Used for three statements: Greenland's government took part in negotiations alongside Denmark and the U.S.; Denmark said the agreement is expected to be signed next week in connection with the UN General Assembly; the full text had not been released. The BBC page (modified 7:36 AM EDT) and TV 2's live blog on the morning of September 19 also say the text is unpublished.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Trump had repeatedly argued that control of Greenland was necessary for U.S. national security, and Greenland's government had been taking part in negotiations with Denmark and the United States on the island's security. The post was published at 5:18 PM EDT on Friday, September 18, 2026.
After the quotation
Fox News Digital published Secretary of State Marco Rubio's statement and a senior U.S. official's description of the agreement at 5:19 PM EDT. Later on Friday, Frederiksen and Greenland's leaders issued statements, Denmark said the agreement is expected to be signed the following week in connection with the UN General Assembly, and NBC News reported that its full text had not been released.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
In the quoted passage Trump states that description himself, says the United States will forever have the complete ability to do what is necessary there, and presents the agreement as a completed result at no cost to the United States, which affirms and endorses the deal as he characterizes it. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because the full post also says the United States will work with the people of Greenland and calls the solution good for Denmark, Greenland and allies. That loses because those lines add to the endorsement instead of qualifying it, and the post states no condition or reservation.
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More from this case
Read the full caseRubio says Trump is fully apprised of the Greenland deal when asked whether he misunderstood it
“Yeah, I'm not sure what comments you're referring to, and I certainly haven't followed how it's been covered in Denmark. Suffice it to say we have a very good deal, one the President is fully apprised of, he understands, and is very supportive of. ... we now have an agreement in place that will exist in perpetuity that ensures not just the equities of North America, meaning the United States and Canada, but all of our partners in NATO as well.”Read statement
Scott Horton says Trump announces at rallies an intention to violate the Greenland agreement
“Trump talks about how he "got Greenland" at every rally now, and people in Greenland, Denmark and around the world take note of how he signed agreements and then announced in campaign rallies his intention to violate them. This is not a joke.”Read statement
Scott Horton says Trump's Greenland posts ignore the substance of the agreement he signed
“Another day, another series of lunatic social media posts by Trump effectively claiming that Greenland is "his" and that he will be licensing oil and gas exploration across the island. As usual, he completely ignores the substance of the agreement he just signed in New York.”Read statement
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- Donald Trump says the Greenland agreement gives the U.S. permanent control over security and all other needs
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The Dispute Index. "Donald Trump says the Greenland agreement gives the U.S. permanent control over security and all other needs". First published: 2026-09-19. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1193-in-a-truth-social-post-announcing-an-agreement