Copenhagen, 14 January 2026 (dpa/MIA) — Denmark is increasing its military presence in and around Greenland with immediate effect, according to a joint statement by the Danish Foreign Ministry and Greenland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Research.

The move is linked to military exercises involving aircraft, ships and soldiers, and will be conducted in close cooperation with NATO allies. The United States has threatened to take over the Arctic island, with force not taken off the table as an option.

The aim is to train for deployments under the Arctic’s special conditions and to strengthen NATO’s presence, the statement said. Greenland is a semi-autonomous member of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Exercise activities could include support for Greenlandic authorities such as the police, the monitoring of critical infrastructure, the deployment of fighter jets in and around Greenland, the performance of naval tasks, as well as the reception of allied troops, the statement added.

The reason was that "security tensions have extended as far as the Arctic," the ministries said.

The announcement came shortly before Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Motzfeldt were due to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Vice President JD Vance in Washington.

The governments of Denmark and Greenland have made clear that a sale or annexation of the territory by the United States is unacceptable.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned of an end to NATO should the US government carry out its threats.