There are already 1,500 British troops, mainly Royal Marines on commando manoeuvres operating out Camp Viking in Norway, who are expected to take part in new exercises in Greenland over the coming days or weeks.<\/p>\n
The British commando force includes a consignment of new snowmobiles, worth \u00a310 million, \u201cfor reconnaissance and raiding operations\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Royal Marine force will be based at Skjold for the next ten years. \u201cThey continue to be at the tip of the Arctic spear,\u201d said a Royal Navy statement. The British deployment includes the Yeovilton-based commando helicopter force.<\/p>\n
Norway confirmed that it was sending two officers and Germany, which described the deployment as a \u201creconnaissance\u201d mission, will send 13 personnel. President Macron also confirmed on Thursday that France would take part. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe first French military elements are already en route. Others will follow,\u201d Macron said on X. Canada and the Netherlands are among the other Nato allies that may make contributions.<\/p>\n
![\"Snow](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/\/343ac531-65bb-4f64-bf32-d45ae927ec74.jpg\")
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Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. The latest mission has been described as a \u201creassurance initiative\u201d<\/p>\n
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JACK HILL<\/p>\n
The mission, which began on Wednesday and will last until Saturday, was pitched in vague terms as a reassurance initiative to boost security in the Arctic and lay the groundwork for larger naval surveillance operations in the future.<\/p>\n
The Danish defence ministry said further exercises this year might include guarding \u201cinstallations critical to society\u201d as well as fighter jet deployments and naval operations.<\/p>\n
Troels Lund Poulsen, the Danish defence minister, declined to give details on the scale of his country\u2019s contribution but said it was a step towards a \u201cmore permanent presence\u201d on Greenland. Asked whether the soldiers would defend the island against an American invasion, Poulsen said it was a \u201chighly hypothetical question\u201d and he did not believe it was likely that one Nato ally would attack another.<\/p>\n
Denmark will increase its military footprint in Greenland, says defence minister<\/p>\n
On Wednesday Trump said Nato ought to be \u201cleading the way\u201d for the US to acquire Greenland because it would make the alliance \u201cfar more formidable and effective\u201d. <\/p>\n
He also argued that America needed the territory to realise his vision of an elaborate \u201cGolden Dome\u201d missile defence system, which he has pledged to establish by 2029 with the capacity to shoot down \u201calmost 100 per cent\u201d of any cruise or ballistic missiles aimed at the US.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Sign up for The Times\u2019s weekly US newsletter<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump said he would be briefed after the press conference but repeated his claim to \u201cneed Greenland for national security\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re gonna see what happens,\u201d Trump said. He argued that US interest in acquiring Greenland was \u201cnot anything so new\u201d, citing President Truman, who tried unsuccessfully to buy the territory after the Second World War.<\/p>\n Trump added that he had spoken to the Nato chief Mark Rutte. \u201cAnd he really wants to see something happen,\u201d Trump said, without further detail.<\/p>\n Since decapitating the Maduro regime in Venezuela on January 3, Trump has doubled down on his pursuit of Greenland, arguing that a US takeover is the only way to keep China and Russia out of the island. He said that he felt a \u201cpsychological need\u201d to obtain the territory, likening it to a piece of real estate and insisting that the US would acquire it \u201ceither the easy way or the hard way\u201d.<\/p>\n \u2022 How do Greenlanders feel about Trump\u2019s threats?<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n On Wednesday Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Vivian Motzfeldt, respectively the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers, visited the White House complex for initial negotiations with Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, and JD Vance, the vice-president.<\/p>\n JD Vance and his wife, Usha, second from left, toured the US military\u2019s Pituffik space base in Greenland in March last year<\/p>\n JIM WATSON\/AP<\/p>\n Any residual optimism about the possibility of a swift compromise was dashed when, in the middle of the talks, the White House social media account posted a meme showing a pair of dog sleds representing Greenland confronted with a choice between an American flag bathed in sunlight and a lightning storm decorated with the Chinese and Russian flags. The caption read: \u201cWhich way, Greenland man?\u201d<\/p>\n Afterwards Rasmussen said the \u201cfrank but constructive\u201d talks had not overcome the \u201cfundamental differences\u201d between the two sides. He also said that Greenland would remain part of Denmark \u201cfor the foreseeable future\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t manage to change the American position,\u201d Rasmussen said. \u201cIt\u2019s clear the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland [sic]. We made it very clear that this isn\u2019t in the interest of the kingdom of Denmark.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Vice](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/\/0b758b7b-e2ae-4199-b808-7f077d534721.jpg\")
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![\"Greenlanders](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/\/dbf63e80-7e21-4176-a69f-98c1612c2756.jpg\")
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