NATO, Denmark Move to Strengthen Arctic Security After Trump Softens Greenland Stance
NATO Secretary-General, Mark Rutte and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen have agreed that the alliance must step up its engagement in Arctic security, amid renewed geopolitical focus on the strategic region and following US President Donald Trump’s decision to back away from earlier threats to seize Greenland.
The agreement was reached on Friday during talks between Rutte and Frederiksen in Brussels. In a post on X after the meeting, Rutte said NATO allies were committed to ensuring collective security across all regions of the alliance, including the High North.
“We’re working together to ensure that the whole of NATO is safe and secure and will build on our cooperation to enhance deterrence and defence in the Arctic,” Rutte wrote.
Frederiksen, who was due to travel to Greenland later on Friday to meet with the territory’s premier, echoed the NATO chief’s remarks, stressing that Arctic security is a shared responsibility.
“We agree that NATO should increase its engagement in the Arctic. Defence and security in the Arctic are matters for the entire alliance,” she said in a separate post.
The discussions come days after President Trump claimed he had reached a framework understanding with Rutte that addressed his concerns over Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory of growing strategic importance.
Trump had previously threatened to take control of the island and impose tariffs on NATO allies who opposed him, citing security risks posed by Russia and China.
Although Trump has since softened his stance, no formal details of any agreement have been made public. However, officials familiar with the talks say enhanced NATO activity in the Arctic formed a key part of the understanding.
On Thursday, Frederiksen disclosed that NATO allies were aligned on the need for a “permanent presence” in the Arctic, including areas around Greenland. While some alliance members have proposed the creation of a dedicated NATO Arctic mission, military commanders say concrete planning has not yet begun.
Sources also revealed that Denmark and the United States are expected to renegotiate a 1951 defence agreement that regulates US military deployments in Greenland.
A revised pact could allow Washington to expand its military footprint on the vast Arctic island, potentially including the deployment of elements of Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defence system.
In a separate statement, NATO confirmed that the United States, Denmark and Greenland would hold talks on intensifying efforts to prevent Russia and China from gaining a strategic foothold in the territory a concern repeatedly raised by Trump as justification for his earlier demands.
As climate change opens new shipping routes and access to natural resources in the Arctic, the region has become an increasingly important arena for global security competition, pushing NATO to reassess and reinforce its presence in the High North.
