How Trump went from threatening force to a Greenland deal

For years, Donald Trump has insisted the US needs Greenland for national security. Now he says he has struck a deal for permanent control of the Arctic island's security, announcing on social media that it addresses all of Washington's concerns.

Trump first floated acquiring the island in his first term, calling it essentially a real estate deal. The US has had a military presence there since the 1940s, and Greenland played a vital role for NATO in monitoring Soviet forces during the Cold War. A 1951 defence pact granted Washington rights to build bases there, later scaled back in 2004.

The deal's details remain undisclosed and are expected to emerge when it is signed next week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Al Jazeera's Michael Appel reports.

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