Gravely alarmed by President Donald Trump\u2019s musings about annexing Greenland \u201cthe hard way,\u201d Danish troops were prepared to blow up key runways located in the vast Arctic island.<\/p>\n
And the Danes dispatched to Greenland during tense days last January were also stocking up on blood in the event of combat erupting with the United States.<\/p>\n
Those Danish military contingencies \u2014 seemingly unimaginable between two historic allies \u2014 were reported by DR, the Scandinavian nation\u2019s public broadcasting company.<\/a><\/p>\n Its reporting was drawn from discussions with \u201ccentral sources in the Danish government\u201d \u2014 along with intelligence sources in Denmark, France and Germany.<\/p>\n Danish soldiers, according to last week\u2019s DR report, arrived in Greenland in January with explosives that could be used to destroy, among other things, runways in the Nuuk and Kangerlussuaq to prevent American military aircraft from landing soldiers on the island.<\/p>\n Also included in their cargo: blood for the battle wounded.<\/p>\n None of the sources cited in the DR report had solid intelligence about American attack plans against Greenland \u2014 but many feared it could actually happen.<\/p>\n The Danes were also reportedly lining up allies as tensions escalated in Greenland \u2014 an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom France alone, Denmark could expect soldiers equivalent to a small battalion, which means several hundred soldiers,\u201d one official told the DR.<\/p>\n Other European allies, including Germany, also reportedly offered support.<\/p>\n The Jan. 3, 2026, U.S. attack on Venezuela heightened Danish concerns of a possible invasion of Greenland.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Donald Trump had not only expressed his intention to use his military superiority, but also demonstrated his willingness to implement it in a country like Venezuela,\u201d the report noted.<\/p>\n The day after the Venezuela operation, Trump, who has said he was \u201ca big fan of Denmark,\u201d was asked by reporters aboard Air Force One about Greenland.<\/p>\n \u2018We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security \u2014 and Denmark is not going to be able to do it, I can tell you,\u201d the president said.<\/p>\n Soon after, according to the DR report, an advance command with Danish, French, German, Norwegian and Swedish soldiers was flown to the Greenland communities of Nuuk and Kangerlussuaq.<\/p>\n Danish fighter planes and a French naval vessel were also reportedly sent towards the North Atlantic.<\/p>\n The DR report was not able to confirm if the European allies would have actually engaged the American troops if they attacked Greenland.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a question that I\u2019m very glad we didn\u2019t have to answer,\u201d a \u201ctop German official\u201d told DR.<\/p>\n The news agency was unable to gather comments in their report from Denmark\u2019s Prime Minister\u2019s Office, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Armed Forces, nor the Greenlandic government.<\/p>\n Trump on Greenland: \u2018I won\u2019t use force\u2019<\/p>\n The Greenland rhetoric has since cooled.<\/p>\n During the Jan. 21 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump ruled out American military action on the massive island.<\/p>\n \u201cWe probably won\u2019t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force where we would be, frankly, unstoppable. But I won\u2019t do that,\u201d he said during his speech at the forum.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s probably the biggest statement I made, because people thought I would use force, but I don\u2019t have to use force \u2014 I don\u2019t want to use force. I won\u2019t use force,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The president has also said in January that he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had \u201cformed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland.\u201d<\/p>\n A White House official told Military Times<\/a> last Friday that such an agreement is \u201cbeing worked on\u201d and will be \u201camazing for the U.S.A.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGreenland is a strategically important location that is critical from the standpoint of national security, and this deal is very important to advancing U.S. national security,\u201d the official added.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the U.S. is coordinating with Denmark to expand its security assets on the island. A 1951 agreement between the two nations allows American forces to maintain a military presence in Greenland, added the Military Times report.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s frankly very favorable to our operations or potential operations in Greenland,\u201d Gen. Gregory Guillot, the commander of the U.S. Northern Command, said in a testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee last week.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have three areas that we\u2019d like to negotiate with Denmark and Greenland to see if we could expand the defense areas from Pituffik, where we are now, into these other areas, which would help our homeland defense mission.\u201d<\/p>\n Guillot also told lawmakers that he has maintained a strong relationship with the Danish military and is seeking \u201cnew and improved\u201d ways to work together.<\/p>\n Utah lawmaker fortifies long-established U.S.\/Denmark ties<\/p>\n A local congressman has also worked to settle tensions between the U.S. and Denmark over the Greenland issue.<\/p>\n