Germany deploys 13 soldiers to Greenland

The German government has announced that it will send 13 soldiers to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, to conduct a military reconnaissance until Sunday.

Bundeswehr soldiers arrive in Nuuk

“By Denmark’s invitation, Germany will take part in a reconnaissance in Greenland,” the Federal Ministry of Defence announced in a press release on January 14. 

13 Bundeswehr soldiers are expected to arrive in Nuuk on Thursday and will “support Denmark in exploring ways to ensure security in the region, for example, for maritime surveillance capabilities,” the ministry said.

Greenland has been in the international spotlight since US President Donald Trump said his country plans to take control of the island “the easy way” or “the hard way”. Trump says he is willing to use military force to conquer the semi-autonomous territory of Denmark.

The Danish government has announced that it will increase its military presence on the island. Alongside Germany, governments in France, Sweden and Norway will send soldiers to support the reconnaissance, scheduled to last until Sunday.

"Soldiers of NATO are expected to be more present in Greenland from today and in the coming days. It is expected that there will be more military flights and ships," Greenland’s deputy prime minister, Mute Egede, said at a press conference.

“Frank but constructive” talks between Denmark, Greenland and US

Following a meeting with US vice president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio on Wednesday, Danish foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said that talks had been “frank but constructive”.

“Our aim was to find a common understanding,” Rasmussen told journalists, but on the long-term security in Greenland, “here our perspectives continue to differ”. “The Kingdom of Denmark continues to believe that, also, the long-term security of Greenland can be ensured inside the current framework.”

Greenland’s history as a Danish territory goes back to Norse explorer Erik the Red, who, around 982 sailed from Iceland to Greenland. After three years, he returned to Iceland to gather support for his plan to colonise Greenland, and in 985 made his return with 14 ships of supporters in tow.

Today, Trump is claiming that US control of Greenland is the only way to ensure Russia and China do not threaten the resource-rich Arctic territories. Rasmussen admitted that there was an “element of truth” in increasing security in Arctic territories, but that Trump’s claims that there were “Chinese destroyers”, “Russian destroyers” and “Russian submarines all over the place” around Greenland, are not true.