Denmark and its allies have deployed military forces to Greenland since January, threatening to destroy the main airport runway amid concerns that the United States might use military force to take control of the area.
Danish media report that the government of Denmark and its allies have sent troops to Greenland since January due to concerns that the United States might attempt to seize control of the territory, amid pressure from Donald Trump who expressed interest in annexing Greenland.
Reports state that the Danish military developed an operational plan to defend Greenland, based on a military order dated 13 January, forming the basis for the deployment and preparing for all scenarios after observing U.S. operations abroad.
Sources say the troops were sent fully equipped with live ammunition, explosives, and medical supplies to handle combat situations, reflecting significantly increased tensions under the operation named Arctic Endurance. Danish forces, along with soldiers from France, Germany, and Sweden, were deployed. Although disguised as military exercises, sources confirm this was genuine preparation, not merely training. Denmark's public television reported that forces even planned to destroy the main airport runway to prevent any potential U.S. invasion orders by Donald Trump on this Arctic island.
The United States and Denmark are both founding members of NATO, but this tension represents one of the most severe crises in their relations in recent years, after Trump repeatedly insisted that the U.S. needed to control Greenland for security reasons.
However, the situation has somewhat eased after Trump stepped back from using force and announced reaching a framework agreement on Greenland with NATO, although details remain unclear.
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