France Proposes NATO Exercise in Greenland Amid Trump's Threats

Live PoliticsNorth America Greenland: France calls for NATO exercise amid Trump threats Matt Ford with AFP, AP, Reuters, dpa Published 01/21/2026Published January 21, 2026 Paris is ready to contribute troops to a "NATO exercise" in Greenland amid threats being made by US President Donald Trump. NATO chief Mark Rutte said he was working to resolve the row behind ‍the scenes. DW has more. https://p.dw.com/p/579uL Advertisement Skip next section What you need to know What you need to know France urged a NATO drill in Greenland and said it was 'ready to contribute' to it NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte says the Arctic needs to protected from Russia, China Trump expected to be late to talks in Davos due to electrical issue on Air Force One Welcome to DW's coverage of developments concerning Greenland on Wednesday, January 21. Catch up with yesterday's news here. Skip next section UK 'will not yield' to Trump pressure over Greenland, PM Starmer says 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 UK 'will not yield' to Trump pressure over Greenland, PM Starmer says British Prime Minister Keir Starmer insisted on Wednesday that the United Kingdom would not give in to pressure from US President Donald Trump over the future of the autonomous Danish territory Greenland. "I will not yield, Britain will not yield on our principles and values about the future of Greenland under threats of tariffs," he told lawmakers in Parliament, adding he would host Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in London on Thursday. Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Britain and other European countries for opposing his claims on Greenland. "The future of Greenland is a binary issue that is splitting the world at the moment, with material consequences," Starmer said. "I've been clear and consistent in my position on the future of Greenland: the future is for Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark alone." https://p.dw.com/p/57BSa Skip next section Danish veterans of US wars feel betrayed by Trump's threats 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Danish veterans of US wars feel betrayed by Trump's threats Danish veterans who served alongside US forces in Afghanistan and Iraq say they feel "betrayed" by Washington's threats to seize Greenland — the Arctic territory which belongs to Denmark. Following the September 11, 2021, attacks, Denmark contributed up to 750 troops to the US-led invasion and occupation of Afghanistan. Out of that number, 44 were killed — the highest per capita death toll among coalition forces. A further eight Danish soldiers were killed fighting alongside US forces in Iraq between 2003 and 2007. The AP news agency spoke to Danish two veterans who said they understand Arctic security concerns but believe Denmark is committed to defending the region within NATO. "When America needed us after 9/11 we were there," said Martin Tamm Andersen, 46, a former Danish platoon commander whose vehicle struck an improvised explosive device (IED) in southern Afghanistan in 2010. "As a veteran and as a Dane, you feel sad and very surprised that the US wants to take over part of the Kingdom of Denmark," he said. "It's a betrayal of the loyalty of our nation to the US and to our common alliance, NATO." Fellow Danish veteran Soren Knudsen also said that the US takeover of Greenland would mark "the final moment of my admiration and love of what has been the American experiment for 250 years." "I would be very sorry if it happened, because I would also see this as the final moments of the NATO alliance," Knudsen said. https://p.dw.com/p/57AkZ Skip next section Europe won't be blackmailed over Greenland, says Swedish PM 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Europe won't be blackmailed over Greenland, says Swedish PM Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said he "would not speculate" on whether the NATO alliance has been shattered beyond repair by US President Donald Trump's threats to take over Greenland, but insisted that European allies "will not accept [being] blackmailed" by Washington. Asked by a journalist on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos whether Sweden regrets abandoning its decades-old policy of neutrality and joining NATO in 2024, Kristersson said: "Absolutely not." "We are in very good cooperation with 31 allies within NATO, we are [making] great progress, we are being integrated very rapidly and we are already making big efforts to increase NATO's combined capacities in our part of the world," he said, adding that this included a willingness to beef up security in Greenland and across the Arctic. Germany joins NATO allies for 'symbolic' Greenland mission To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video https://p.dw.com/p/57Ahd Skip next section NATO's Rutte: Greenland tensions should not distract from Ukraine 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 NATO's Rutte: Greenland tensions should not distract from Ukraine NATO Secretary General ‌Mark Rutte has warned alliance members not to allow tensions over Greenland to take their attention away from the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. "The ⁠focus on Ukraine should be the ‍number one priority, ​it is ​crucial for European and US security," Rutte said in a panel discussion at the World ‍Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. "I am really ​worried that we lose sight and ⁠that, ​in the meantime, [the] Ukrainians won't ‌have enough interceptor [missiles] to defend themselves." The Norwegian Defense Minister agreed, reminding NATO allies that their common adversary remains Russia. "These are demanding times. The situation in NATO is difficult," ‍Tore Sandvik told a meeting ​with foreign correspondents in Oslo, Norway. "[But] the dimensional threat ⁠for ​the West, for NATO ... ‌is still Russia." Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor three years and 11 months ago on February 22, 2022, and continues to bombard Ukrainian towns and cities on a nightly basis. https://p.dw.com/p/57Ael Skip next section Trump's arrival in Davos delayed due to plane issue 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Trump's arrival in Davos delayed due to plane issue US President Donald Trump's journey to the World Economic Forum in Davos has been delayed due to an electrical problem which forced him to switch planes. "I ‍believe President Trump ​is ​going to be about three hours late," said US ‌Treasury ⁠Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday. You can read our rolling updates on the 2026 Davos conference here. Trump was originally scheduled to give a speech to the annual gathering of the world's economic and political elite at 2:30 p.m. local time, but his address will now be pushed back. https://p.dw.com/p/57A4f Skip next section NATO's Rutte: Working on Greenland issue 'behind the scenes' 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 NATO's Rutte: Working on Greenland issue 'behind the scenes' NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte says he will not publicly comment on ⁠the ‍tensions between the United States and its European allies ⁠over President Donald Trump's Greenland demands, but said that discussions were taking place in private. "You can ‌be ⁠assured that I'm working on this issue behind ‍the scenes, but I cannot ​do ​it in public," Rutte said during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. He also said "thoughtful diplomacy" was the only way to resolve the dispute. "President Trump and other ‍leaders are right; we have to do more there," he said. "We have to protect the Arctic against Russian ⁠and Chinese ​influence. We are working on ‌that [and] ‌making sure that, collectively, we'll defend the Arctic region." https://p.dw.com/p/57AML Skip next section Amid US pressure, France calls for 'NATO exercise' in Greenland 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Amid US pressure, France calls for 'NATO exercise' in Greenland French President Emmanuel Macron has called on NATO allies to conduct a military exercise in Greenland in response to US President Donald Trump's increasing bellicose rhetoric regarding the Danish territory. "France calls for a NATO exercise in Greenland and is ready to contribute to it," Macron's office said on Wednesday ahead of Trump's arrival at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he is expected to escalate his ‍push for acquiring the Arctic territory. It was not immediately clear if the proposed exercise would involve troops from the US, which is by far the biggest military power in the alliance. Speaking in Davos on Tuesday, Macron responded to Trump's threat to impose tariffs with scathing criticism and an insistence that Europe would not give in to bullies or be intimidated. Macron: 'We do prefer respect to bullies' To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The Trump administration has claimed that the US should control Greenland for geopolitical reasons as the opening up of new Arctic sea lanes — due to global warming — threatens to increase tensions with Russia and China in the region. The president himself has also linked the issue to his frustration at not receiving a Nobel Peace Prize. But given that Denmark, to which Greenland belongs, is a member of both NATO and the European Union, NATO leaders have warned that Trump's ⁠Greenland ​policy could upend the transatlantic alliance. https://p.dw.com/p/57A1O Skip next section Greeland recap: What's the latest? 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Greeland recap: What's the latest? You can see all DW updates on the Greenland dispute from yesterday, January 20, in our Tuesday blog giving But here's a quick recap: EU chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed an 'unflinching' response to Trump's threat of tariffs US President Donald Trump said he believes 'something is going to work out' between the US and Europe over Greenland California Governor Gavin Newsom said European leaders are being 'played for fools' by Trump Pro-Greenland protesters launched red 'Make America Go Away' caps, mocking the 'Make America Great Again' (MAGA) merchandise often worn by Trump and his supporters Trump first signaled his ambitions for the US to acquire Greenland during his first term, but escalated the issue after winning the 2024 election, portraying it as a national security issue. Following the US operation in Venezuela earlier this month, Trump insisted that Russia or China could take control of the island if the US did not. Trump also said that the deal with Denmark could happen "the easy way" or "the hard way." https://p.dw.com/p/57A6H Skip next section Welcome to our coverage 01/21/2026January 21, 2026 Welcome to our coverage Hello and welcome to DW's coverage of the diplomatic dispute over Greenland on Wednesday, January 21. NATO chief Mark Rutte urged "thoughtful diplomacy" and said he was working to resolve the crisis behind the scenes. French President Emmanuel Macron is already in Davos and has called, via his office, for a "NATO exercise" in Greenland. US President Donald Trump is expected to address global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, — although he's running a bit late. Stay tuned for updates throughout the day. https://p.dw.com/p/57A6f Show more posts