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Several NATO countries are deploying small numbers of military personnel to Greenland to take part in joint exercises with Denmark, as US President Donald Trump intensifies his threats to forcibly annex the Arctic island.
Trump’s remarks have sent shockwaves through Europe’s decades-old, US-led security alliance by raising the unprecedented possibility of NATO’s most powerful member seeking to take over territory belonging to another member state. Denmark, which is responsible for Greenland’s defense, has warned that any attack on the island would effectively spell the end of NATO and has announced an expansion of its military presence in close cooperation with allied nations.
Germany, Sweden, France, and Norway have confirmed that they are sending military personnel to Greenland this week to participate in joint exercises with Danish forces. Canada and France have also announced plans to open consulates in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, in the coming weeks, further underlining diplomatic support for Denmark and Greenland.
While it is common for NATO countries to deploy troops to train in other allied nations, and joint Arctic exercises have been encouraged for years, the timing and symbolism of these deployments are striking.
They come amid extraordinary tensions within NATO, triggered by Trump’s increasingly blunt statements about Greenland. The United States already maintains about 150 troops at its Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland.
Trump has repeatedly voiced his ambition to seize control of the world’s largest island, including by force if necessary, stating during a recent press conference that he would “do something on Greenland, whether they like it or not.”
