Bilateral talks, not a NATO decision
Any new security arrangement for Greenland brokered by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte must be formally presented to all NATO allies before it can move forward, Spain’s foreign minister has said. Speaking to Euronews on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, José Manuel Albares stressed that the discussions so far amount to a bilateral exchange rather than an agreed NATO position.
According to Albares, the talks between Rutte and US President Donald Trump do not represent an alliance-wide decision. “It is not NATO,” he said, adding that it was simply the NATO secretary general speaking with one member state. He noted that other allied foreign ministers were equally in the dark, having heard only the public announcement and no concrete details.
Greenland’s future, Denmark’s call
President Trump announced on Wednesday that Washington had reached an understanding with Rutte on Greenland’s security, a move that could pave the way for a larger US military presence and additional American bases in the Arctic territory. The announcement followed weeks of tension, during which Trump openly floated the idea of the US acquiring Greenland.
Albares was unequivocal in his response, telling Euronews that decisions about Greenland’s future rest solely with Greenlanders and Denmark. “They have said it very clearly: they want to remain part of Denmark,” he said. Danish authorities have echoed that stance, repeatedly rejecting any suggestion that the territory could be sold and insisting that Greenland’s sovereignty was not part of the reported security arrangement.
Earlier threats from Trump to impose tariffs on several European countries, including Denmark, France and Germany, only deepened unease in Europe. The US president framed control of Greenland as a national security issue linked to countering Chinese and Russian influence in the Arctic, but polls show most Greenlanders oppose joining the United States.
Calls for European defence unity
While details of the Rutte-brokered framework remain scarce, Albares said Europe should not negotiate under pressure. He described the US approach as unacceptable and warned that the EU has its own tools to respond if needed, according to Euronews.
Looking beyond the immediate dispute, the Spanish foreign minister used the moment to renew calls for stronger European defence cooperation. He argued that if Europe wants to remain a continent of peace, it must be able to deter both military threats and economic coercion.
“That means a coalition of willing states on European security, deeper integration of defence industries and, ultimately, moving towards a European army,” Albares said, underlining that security and shared values must go hand in hand.
