Denmark is sending more troops to Greenland and proposing a NATO mission around the island to counter US demands to take over the territory. Sweden is ready to contribute, while European leaders criticize Donald Trump's tariff threats. Tensions within NATO are being tested, but the alliance's core holds according to Defense Minister Pål Jonson.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly demanded control over Greenland for security reasons and threatened several European countries, including Sweden, with punitive tariffs of 10 percent from February 1, 2026, potentially rising to 25 percent from June 1. He has accused Denmark of neglecting Arctic security and has not ruled out a military operation.
Denmark is responding by sending a significant number of soldiers to Kangerlussuaq in Greenland on Monday. Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen and Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt met NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Brussels to discuss a special NATO mission. 'We emphasized that we are doing more in relation to the Arctic,' Lund Poulsen said after the meeting.
Sweden's Defense Minister Pål Jonson participated in meetings with Nordic counterparts and confirmed Sweden's readiness: 'Sweden stands ready to contribute and plays a constructive role.' A reconnaissance trip with Swedish officers is already underway. Jonson noted that tensions affect NATO, but Article 5's defense pledge remains solid: 'It is clear that we are affected, but the ability for joint deterrence holds firm.'
Trump admitted in a call with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer that he may have misinterpreted the purpose of troops in Greenland as a provocation, according to Sky News. European leaders like Italy's Giorgia Meloni and Sweden's Ulf Kristersson have criticized the threats: 'We will not be blackmailed.'
The EU is planning countermeasures, including retaliatory tariffs up to 1,000 billion SEK, and discussing the 'trade bazooka' to restrict US companies. The Stockholm Stock Exchange fell 2.1 percent after the threats, with declines for companies like Nibe and Hexagon.
Within the US, criticism is growing from Republicans like Thom Tillis and Michael McCaul, who warn that an invasion would upend NATO's Article 5. A CBS poll shows 86 percent of Americans oppose a military operation.