Troop buildup: Tensions rise after Trump's messages – are they preparing for a showdown?

“The aim of the exercises is to develop skills in the unique conditions of the Arctic and to strengthen the presence of the Arctic community in a way that contributes to security in Europe and the Atlantic,” the statement said, as reported by The Guardian.

The deployment of military forces to Greenland comes ahead of talks today in Washington between the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland and senior U.S. officials, and follows escalatory rhetoric by U.S. President Donald Trump.

“Exercise activities in 2026 could include guarding critical infrastructure, providing assistance to local authorities in Greenland, including the police, receiving allied troops, deploying combat aircraft in and around Greenland, and conducting maritime operations,” the statement added.

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen announced that the Danish armed forces, together with numerous Arctic and European allies, will explore in the coming weeks how increased presence and exercise activity in the Arctic can be implemented in practice.

It has not yet been specified which European NATO allies will join the exercises.

Earlier today, the Danish Ministry of Defence said it would continue to strengthen its military presence in Greenland.

Military presence on Greenland is being reinforced

The ministry stated that Copenhagen is maintaining a “continuous dialogue” with allies to increase NATO activity in the Arctic.

“We will continue to strengthen our military presence on Greenland, but we will also insist within NATO on more exercises and an increased NATO presence in the Arctic,” Poulsen said.

Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said yesterday that Greenland remains committed to Denmark.

“If we have to choose between Denmark and the United States, we choose Denmark,” he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who previously said that “the United States will have Greenland one way or another,” commented on Nielsen’s statement by saying that he “does not agree with him.”

“I don’t know who he is. I don’t know anything about him. But that will be a big problem for him,” Trump said.