The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said Greenland’s defence was a “common concern” for the whole of Nato, as troops started arriving from across Europe as a result of Donald Trump’s threats to take the Arctic island by force.
Troops from France, Germany, Norway and Sweden, among others, were on their way to Greenland, a largely autonomous territory of the kingdom of Denmark, on Thursday. Denmark also announced it would be increasing its military presence.
It comes after a difficult meeting in Washington on Wednesday between the foreign ministers of Greenland and Denmark, Vivian Motzfeldt and Lars Løkke Rasmussen, and the US vice-president, JD Vance, and secretary of state, Marco Rubio.
The visit was intended to smooth relations between Denmark and Greenland and the US, but it did not appear to have had the desired effect. Afterwards, Trump reiterated his previous comments that the US “needs” Greenland for national security, adding that Denmark could not be relied on to protect the island and that “something will work out”.
In a statement released on Thursday, Frederiksen said it was “not an easy meeting” and that a working group was now being set up to discuss how Arctic security could be improved.
“However, that does not change the fact that there is a fundamental disagreement because the American ambition to take over Greenland is intact,” she added. “This is obviously serious and therefore we continue our efforts to prevent that scenario from becoming a reality.”
There was, she said, agreement within Nato that “a strengthened presence in the Arctic is crucial for European and North American security”.
She added that Denmark had “invested significantly in new Arctic capabilities”, while “a number of allies” were taking part in joint exercises “in and around” Greenland.
“The defence and protection of Greenland is a common concern for the entire Nato alliance,” she said.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, announced on Wednesday that the first members of the French military were “already en route” and that “others will follow”. About 15 French soldiers from the mountain infantry unit were already in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, for a military exercise, French authorities said. Meanwhile, Germany on Thursday said it would deploy a reconnaissance team of 13 personnel to Greenland.
The Danish defence minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, said on Thursday that he planned to establish “a more permanent military presence” on Greenland “with a larger Danish contribution”. Military personnel from multiple Nato countries would be in Greenland on a rotation system, he said.
After the high-stakes meeting in Washington, Løkke Rasmussen said there continued to be a “fundamental disagreement” over Greenland, adding that it remained “clear that the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland”.
Trump said: “We really need it.” He added: “If we don’t go in, Russia is going to go in and China is going to go in. And there’s not a thing Denmark can do about it, but we can do everything about it.”
