Rutte is well versed in dealing with Trump. It is likely that their conversation pushed the right buttons, offering him an offramp for his “psychologically important” need for Greenland. Earlier diplomatic talks between American, Danish and Greenlandic representatives addressing the reasons behind the US wish to annex Greenland – national security, the mineral resources under its land mass and its quick access to space – had not made the breakthrough. Further Nato and European assurances on these questions seem to be part of the “framework” that Rutte and Trump discussed to end the crisis, such as banning China from mining exploration and offering a base for the US Golden Dome project.