‘Fundamental disagreement’ with US over Greenland stays

Denmark will increase its military presence in Greenland “from today,” the Danish defense ministry said Wednesday.

The move is in response to unspecified “geopolitical tensions” that have “spread to the Arctic,” the ministry said in a statement.

“From today, there will be an expanded military presence in and around Greenland – in close cooperation with NATO allies,” the ministry said, adding that the increased presence would help “strengthen the alliance’s footprint in the Arctic, benefiting both European and transatlantic security.”

The statement explained that more aircraft, vessels and soldiers, from Denmark and from NATO allies, would be deployed to Greenland.

The deployment also foresees military exercises for this year, which could include guarding critical infrastructure, assisting local Greenland authorities such as the police, hosting allied troops, conducting naval operations and deploying fighter aircraft in the area, the statement said.

Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivan Motzfeldt, who will be attending the talks in Washington DC later on Wednesday, said, “It is a core priority for the Government of Greenland that defence and security in and around Greenland are strengthened, and that this is achieved in close cooperation with our NATO allies.”

Danish Defense Minister Lund Poulsen, for his part, said: “Security in the Arctic is of crucial importance to the Kingdom of Denmark and our Arctic allies, and it is therefore important that we, in close cooperation with allies, further strengthen our ability to operate in the region.”

“The Danish Armed Forces, together with a number of Arctic and European allies, will explore in the coming weeks how an increased presence and exercise activity in the Arctic can be implemented in practice,” Poulsen added.

The statement made no direct mention of the United States.