EU offers troops to Greenland amid Trump's annexation threats

Wednesday 14 January 2026 - 08:20

By: Dakir Madiha

EU offers troops to Greenland amid Trump's annexation threats

The European Union has signaled readiness to extend security assistance to Greenland should Denmark request it, as transatlantic tensions escalate over U.S. President Donald Trump's overt push to acquire the Arctic territory. European Commissioner for Defense and Space Andrius Kubilius made this proposal on Monday at the Folk och Försvar security conference in Sweden, cautioning that any U.S. military takeover would effectively dismantle NATO. "I agree with the Danish Prime Minister that it would be the end of NATO, but also that the repercussions for the populations would be very, very negative," Kubilius told Reuters.

He outlined potential EU actions, including troop deployments and military infrastructure development such as enhanced naval presence and anti-drone capabilities, under Article 42.7 of the EU treaty, which mandates mutual aid if a member state faces armed aggression.

The diplomatic standoff shifts to Washington on Wednesday, where Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt will meet U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House. Ahead of the talks, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen firmly rejected overtures from Washington. "In a scenario where we must choose between the United States and Denmark right now, our choice is Denmark," Nielsen stated at a joint press conference with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday. "Greenland does not wish to be governed by the United States."

Danish Foreign Minister Rasmussen described the meeting as an opportunity to "take all this discussion into a meeting room where we can look each other in the eye."

European unity hardens against Trump's demands. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson condemned the U.S. administration's "threatening rhetoric" at the Sälen conference, calling it a breach of international law that "risks encouraging other countries to act in exactly the same way." He urged Trump to thank Denmark for its loyalty instead of issuing threats, noting that over 50 Danish soldiers died fighting alongside Americans in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Leaders from France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, Great Britain, and Denmark issued a joint statement last week affirming that decisions on Greenland concern "Denmark and Greenland, and them alone." Reports in The Sunday Telegraph suggest the EU is preparing contingency plans for sanctions against U.S. firms including Meta, Google, Microsoft, and X if Trump dismisses proposals for bolstered NATO deployments in the region.

Trump has repeatedly insisted the United States must "own" Greenland, citing national security concerns over Russian and Chinese activities in the Arctic. He has not ruled out military or economic coercion, though Secretary of State Rubio expressed a preference for negotiations.