NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he intends to move swiftly to turn the Greenland framework agreed to by President Trump into something concrete, signaling that follow-up talks will begin without delay.
“There’s a lot of work to be done. We’ll do it step by step, but of course, working fast, but also with thoughtful diplomacy,” Rutte said in an interview on Special Report with host Bret Baier.
Rutte emphasized that the process will advance decisively, adding, “We will get this done.”
Trump has recently made clear that he believes anything less than U.S. “ownership” of Greenland would fall short of what is needed, sharpening the stakes surrounding the framework.
When asked whether Greenland would continue as a Danish territory under the proposed arrangement, Rutte said that question was not part of the talks.
“That issue did not come up anymore in my conversation with the president,” Rutte explained. “He’s very much focused on what do we need to do to make sure that that huge Arctic region … where the Chinese, Russians are more and more active … how we can protect that.
“That was really the focus of our discussions.”
The NATO chief’s remarks underscore that the negotiations, led under the umbrella of NATO, are centered primarily on security concerns in the Arctic rather than questions of sovereignty.
{Matzav.com}
