Canada Weighs Sending Troops to Greenland for NATO Exercises

Canada has drawn up plans to send a small contingent of soldiers to Greenland for military exercises with other NATO allies in the face of threats from U.S. President Donald Trump to acquire the semi-autonomous island controlled by Denmark, two senior government officials say. The officials told The Globe and Mail that the Canadian Armed Forces is awaiting final political approval from Prime Minister Mark Carney before the soldiers are flown to Greenland. The Globe is not identifying the senior officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. Sending Canadian troops would likely anger Mr. Trump, who has threatened to hit a group of European countries with new tariffs after they dispatched miliary personnel to Greenland in a show of solidarity with Denmark. Canada currently has three CF-18 fighter jets and a Cormorant helicopter in Greenland as part of a North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) exercise involving the United States. The officials said a small number of Canadian soldiers could be on their way to Greenland this week as part of Danish-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization military exercises if the Prime Minister signs off on the plan. The officials were unsure when the Prime Minister would make the decision but they believe it is imminent. The Canadians would join NATO soldiers from Germany, Britain, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Finland, all of which Mr. Trump is now threatening with tariffs because of their troops’ presence. Canada’s participation – if approved – is meant to reinforce NATO’s commitment to policing the Arctic and show support for Denmark, the officials said. In Doha, Qatar, on Sunday, Mr. Carney called Mr. Trump’s talk of using economic coercion to acquire Greenland a worrisome intensification of the situation. He said he plans to tell the President the future security of the Arctic island can be safeguarded by NATO. Mr. Carney did not respond to a question about whether Canada is prepared to join other NATO countries in building up a military presence in Greenland as a show of support. The President has justified his demand to make Greenland U.S. territory by saying the strategically located Arctic island and its valuable resources should not be allowed to fall under the control of Russia or China. Mr. Carney invoked Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as he outlined his response to Mr. Trump’s latest pressure tactic to gain control of Greenland. “It’s a serious situation, and we’re concerned. We’re concerned about this escalation,” the Prime Minister said of Mr. Trump’s tariff threat. U.S. legislators from both the Democratic and Republican parties have criticized the Trump threat to Greenland and his subsequent tariff threat. The U.S. President has said he feels Denmark is ill equipped to defend the Arctic island and its critical mineral resources if Russia or China chose to take it over. But Mr. Carney said he believes that NATO can handle the job of defending Greenland. He said he talked to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, during his recent visit to Paris, about protecting the Arctic. The Prime Minister said he and Mr. Rutte talked about how “we’re going to further enhance that security umbrella” over the northern flank of the NATO territory. Operation Arctic Endurance is a Danish‑led NATO military exercise and forward deployment in and around Greenland, intended to signal allied commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland.