President Trump pulled off a historic geostrategic move Friday when he announced a deal with Greenland and Denmark that would put the U.S. firmly in control of Greenland's foreign affairs even if it becomes independent; see Whoa: Trump Secures Incredible Deal on Greenland – RedState. Trump used Truth Social to announce the deal.

BREAKING NEWS: 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. 

Additionally, from now on, no U.S. adversary can EVER have a base in Greenland, have a military presence in Greenland, or make sensitive investments in Greenland, without our express written approval. For over 100 years, Presidents have known the strategic importance of Greenland, but NONE of them were able to do anything about it. I am proud to be the President that permanently and conclusively addressed this very important situation. 

This is an “Infinite Life” Agreement, there is no end! We are very honored and proud of what has just taken place, and everything agreed to today will be cherished by the American People. We will immediately begin the process of developing a large Military presence in the appropriate part of Greenland, of which there are many. We will work with the people of Greenland in its development and construction. This solution is a great one for the United States of America, Denmark, Greenland, and all of our Allies. 

We look forward to working with the wonderful people of Denmark and Greenland toward a magnificent future with respect to this large, and highly strategic, parcel of land. We will be very protective of it! This is a dream come true for the United States of America, one that is very important, historic, and special.

Had any other president scored this coup, the foreign policy commentariat would be singing his praises. But because this is the evil Trump, the accomplishment is being downplayed as either a major walkback from Trump's original position or a bogus agreement that is merely a warmed-over version of another agreement signed over 70 years ago.

The best example of the accomplishment being framed as half a loaf, naturally, is from The Washington Post. This is the lede:

The White House has struck a deal that gives “permanent control over security” in Greenland to the United States, President Donald Trump said Friday, declaring victory in his long-running desire to increase U.S. sway over the Arctic territory even though the deal fell far short of actual conquest.

Their point seems to be that because Trump's initial negotiating position was annexation of Greenland and he only ended up controlling Greenland's military and foreign policy, that this was a failure. I don't pretend to have insights into Trump's mind, but a basic rule in negotiating a deal is "if they don't laugh at your first offer, you're paying too much." 

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In fact, if you've followed the issue, you'd instantly recognize that the deal Trump announced on Friday has been in the works for over nine months; see Trump Locks in 'Total Access' to Greenland Forever in New Deal – RedState.

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The second line of attack says that the deal cut by Trump is the same as the current deal we have with Greenland.

This is our pathetic ambassador to Russia under Barack Hussein Obama, Michael McFaul.

This is a large progressive and virulently anti-Trump X account (over 500k followers) that is framed as though it belongs to a former White House or National Security Council staffer. Who knows if this is true, but the fact remains that it is very influential on the left.

McFaul and "Angry Staffer" are talking about the "Defense of Greenland: Agreement Between the United States and the Kingdom of Denmark, April 27, 1951."  The 2004 Igaliku Agreement updated this treaty to include the indigenous government in all negotiations.

The original treaty was part of the North Atlantic Treaty that founded NATO. It makes it clear that U.S. authority in Greenland should be viewed the same way as U.S. basing in Europe. That is, the host nation has a veto over activities and must approve all basing. The 2004 agreement limits the U.S. to precisely one base in Greenland: the former Thule Air Base, now known as Pituffik Space Base. Most importantly, the current treaty was a subset of the North Atlantic Treaty. Article XIV of the 1951 agreement said, “This Agreement, being in implementation of the North Atlantic Treaty, shall remain in effect for the duration of the North Atlantic Treaty.” So if the U.S. left NATO, it would lose all basing rights in Greenland. Or, if Greenland became independent and were not a NATO member, the treaty would also be void.

We don't know exactly what is in the new agreement, but from multiple sources, the outline looks like this:

Just a note here. Permanent access and the ability to add bases are a huge change from the existing treaty. The fact that it exists outside the NATO framework is huge. This one point alone shows the agreement is nothing like the current defense arrangement.

This is also a major point. Small countries and territories like Greenland are very vulnerable to what is called "elite capture" by China. They simply buy off a majority of the local legislature, have their stooges appointed to all important positions, and give China the rights to their minerals to build dual-purpose bases. This is happening all over the Western Pacific and Africa; see China Seeks to Buy Eight Pacific Island Nations While Joe Biden and His State Department Are Comatose – RedState. It was only recently stomped out in Latin America.

The defense aspect can't be overemphasized. No ballistic missile defense of the U.S. is possible unless we can build anti-ballistic missile sites and radar installations wherever we want in Greenland.

This is your reminder of the great circle routes that ICBM would take to hit the center of the USA from: Iran (Red); Purple (Pakistani) [NB: these are also the routes from most of the Russian ICBM fields]; Russia (Yellow); PRC (Orange); NORK (White). Adjust actual launch sites and actual targets as needed. You can do this yourself on GoogleEarth. 

Greenland is the shield for North America from most of the worst places in the world. To have it under utilized as such has always been a threat to the USA since the invention of intercontinental bombers and missiles. 

This is by far an exceptional net good. Well meaning people can argue about how we got here, but we got here.  No one else made it happen.

The bottom line is that the current agreement, as State Department officials told multiple outlets, bears no resemblance to the 1951 treaty or its 2004 update. The U.S. is allowed unlimited bases in perpetuity. It can prevent any non-NATO nation from establishing bases. It can also veto any commercial deal with a foreign entity, effectively blocking both the Chinese and Russians from mining, drilling, exploration, and establishing facilities in Greenland or offshore in its Exclusive Economic Zone. Any assertion to the contrary is an easily disprovable lie.

This move also brings Greenland independence a little closer. U.S. bases and the construction activity will boost the local economy. It will also mean much closer ties between U.S. officials and Greenland elites, and so long as our reps don't have purple hair, nose rings, and require a forklift to move them around, that is good. Greenland is also unhappy with their relationship with Denmark; see Greenlanders Blast Danish Rule: 'They Stole Our Future' – RedState. Genocide is an ugly thing, even if the genocidaires are non-threatening Danes and not Russians or Chinese. 

The new relationship with the U.S., particularly the active defense of Greenland's sovereignty by keeping the major predators out, will probably end with Greenland seeking to negotiate a compact of free association, like those we maintain with Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau. If that happens, Trump's bloodless conquest of Greenland will be complete.