Denmark boosts Greenland defence after Trump repeats desire for US control

The Danish government has announced a major increase in defense spending in Greenland, hours after US President-elect Donald Trump reiterated his desire to buy the Arctic region.

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the package is worth “two billion dollars” in krone, or at least $1.5bn (£1.2bn).

He described the timing of the announcement as “surprising”. On Monday, Trump said ownership and control of the island was “important” to the US.

Greenland, an independent Danish territory, is home to the US’s largest landmass and is very important to the US, being on the shortest route from North America to Europe. It has large mineral reserves.

Poulsen said the package would allow for the purchase of two new patrol boats, two new long-range drones and two additional dog units.

It will also include funding to expand the Arctic Command’s headquarters in Nuuk and upgrade one of Greenland’s three main airports to accommodate F-35 advanced fighter jets.

“We have not invested enough in the Arctic for many years, now we are planning to have a strong presence,” he said.

The Ministry of Defense did not give an exact figure for the package, but Danish media say it will be around 12-15bn krone.

The announcement came a day after Trump said on his social network Truth Social: “For the purposes of National Security and Freedom in the World, the United States of America considers the ownership and control of Greenland to be very important.”

Greenland Prime Minister Mute Egede responded to Trump’s commentsto say “we are not selling”.

But he added that Greenlanders should continue to be open to cooperation and trade, especially with their neighbors.

Experts say that the policy has been discussed for a long time and should not be seen as a direct response to Trump’s comments.

So far Denmark has been too slow to expand its military power in Greenland, they say, but if the country can’t protect the waters around its territory from destruction by China and Russia then US interests for more control may grow.

Maj Steen Kjaergaard of the Danish Defense Academy suggests that it may have been Trump’s intention to force Denmark to move.

“It should be triggered by Trump’s new views on the need for air and sea traffic around Greenland and what is happening inside Greenland where some are showing a desire to look at the US – a new international airport in Nuuk has just been launched.” he told the BBC.

“I think Trump is smart… he makes Denmark prioritize its Arctic military capabilities by raising these words, not taking a health plan inconsistent with America,” he added, referring to Greenland’s strong reliance on Copenhagen.

Trump’s initial proposal in 2019 for the US to annex Greenland, the world’s largest island, drew similar criticism from leaders there.

At the time Danish Prime Minister Mette Fredericksen described the idea as “absurd”, leading Trump to cancel the trip to the country.

He is not the first US president to say that he wants to buy Greenland. The concept was first introduced in the 1860s under the leadership of Andrew Johnson.