Denmark and US fail to resolve differences, Europeans to send troops to Greenland

Washington/Nuuk, Greenland, Jan 14 (EFE).- The meeting in Washington on Wednesday between representatives of the United States, Denmark, and Greenland ended without an agreement, beyond the creation of a working group, as several European countries announced the deployment of troops to reinforce the allied presence in the Arctic island.

US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio welcomed Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt to the White House, but after a 50-minute meeting, Danish authorities confirmed that positions remain at odds due to President Donald Trump’s desire to annex the Danish autonomous territory.

«We have decided to form a high-level working group to explore if we can find a common way forward,” Rasmussen said at a subsequent press conference with Motzfeldt.

«The group, in our view, should focus on how to address the American security concerns, while at the same time respecting the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark,” he added.

Although the Danish minister described the discussion as frank and constructive, he admitted that Washington’s position has not changed and indicated that the group will meet for the first time «in a matter of weeks.»The European country considers any proposal that does not respect the territorial integrity of Greenland and the right of self-determination of the Greenlandic people to be totally unacceptable.

On Wednesday, before the meeting, Trump said, “NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES.”

European military reinforcement in the Arctic

Hours before the meeting, the Danish Ministry of Defense announced an increased presence and military maneuvers in Greenland in collaboration with its NATO allies.

Denmark has already mobilized an advance command to Nuuk to prepare for the arrival of troops, aircraft, and ships; Sweden, Norway, Germany, and France have joined the initiative and will send troops.

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson confirmed on Wednesday the arrival of Swedish officers at Denmark’s request to participate in the preparation of the so-called «Operation Arctic Endurance.»

Norwegian Defense Minister Tore O. Sandvik told the NTB news agency that his country will contribute by sending military personnel to explore ways to increase cooperation between allies.

On Thursday, Germany will send a military contingent to Greenland for a two-day exploration of the conditions for a potential security contribution to the region.

France will also be sending troops, according to sources at the Ministry of Defense.

In recent days, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had already raised the need to strengthen allied presence on the Arctic island.

Germany and the United Kingdom pointed to the possibility of using this formula to appease Trump’s alleged concern about Greenland’s security in the face of Russia and China’s presence in the Arctic., an argument he uses to justify the need for annexation.

From Brussels, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed the European Union’s support for the island, stressing that Arctic security is a priority for the bloc.

«This is not the time to talk about independence.»

Greenland’s president, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, has stated that the gravity of the current situation requires prioritizing unity within the Kingdom of Denmark over the debate on independence.

«It’s not the time to gamble with our right to self-determination, when another country is talking about taking us over,» Nielsen said in an interview published Wednesday by Greenlandic public television station KNR and digital media outlet Sermitsiaq. EFEime/mcd