UK’s plan to ship only one navy member to Greenland ‘appears like dangerous motion film’
Soldiers, ships, and aircraft from Denmark and four other NATO allies are heading to Greenland after Trump threatened to take over the island – but the UK is sending just one officer
Welsh Guards training at the Sennybridge training area, Powys, Wales, United Kingdom(Image: Getty Images/Stocktrek Images)
European countries are sending a joint force to Greenland after talks in Washington failed to calm US President Donald Trump‘s demands for the United States to take over the island, currently controlled by Denmark.
In preparation for a larger exercise called Operation Arctic Endurance, the rapid deployment will involve soldiers, naval vessels, and aircraft from Denmark along with a few unarmed or lightly armed military staff from Germany, France, Norway, and Sweden.
However, the UK will be sending just one lone military officer to Greenland, the defence secretary John Healey announced. “At the request of the Danish government, there is one UK military officer that is part of this reconnaissance group.”
Trump said on Wednesday (January 14) said that NATO should be “leading the way” for the US to acquire Greenland because it would make the alliance “far more formidable and effective”. He also claimed that the US needs the island to achieve its “Golden Dome” missile defence system.
The polarising president reportedly aims to set up the system by 2029 to shoot down “almost 100%” of any cruise or ballistic missiles aimed at the US. Speaking in the Oval Office, the president told the press that the US needs Greenland “for national security”.
“We’re gonna see what happens,” he said. US interest in Greenland was “not anything so new”, he added, as Harry S. Truman, the 33rd president of the US, had tried to buy the island after the Second World War.
Trump said he had spoken to NATO chief Mark Rutte, who “really wants to see something happen”. During the same briefing that confirmed that the UK would send one military officer as part of a reconnaissance group to Greenland at the request of the Danish government, Healey made said: “We share President Trump’s concern about the security of the high north.
“And you see this as part of NATO and JEF [Joint Expeditionary Force] nations stepping up to reinforce security in the high north — stepping up, with stronger exercising, to deter the Russian aggression and the Chinese activity.” The decision to send only one soldier received mixed response, with people online mocking the outcome.
“I know a John Statham plot when I see one,” a person quipped on Threads. Someone else penned: “Jason Statham is… The Greenlander.”
Another threads user joked: “Jason Statham be like: ‘æ!’ A separate individual chimed in: “Would watch.
“Would also expect zero health & safety compliance.” Meanwhile, Norway is sending two officers and Germany will send 13 staff.
President Macron said on Thursday (January 15) that some French military elements are “en route” and others would follow. Canada and the Netherlands may also send personnel.
The mission started on Wednesday and will end on Saturday. It aims to give reassurance, boost security in the Arctic, and prepare the way for larger naval surveillance operations. Denmark said further exercises this year might guard “installations critical to society” and include fighter jets and navy ships, according to The Times.
The Danish defence minister said the mission was a step towards a “more permanent presence” on Greenland. Asked whether the soldiers would defend the island against a US invasion, he said it was a “highly hypothetical question” but NATO allies would be unlikely to attack each other.
Since toppling the Maduro regime in Venezuela on January 3, Trump has kept calling for the US to acquire Greenland as the only way to keep out China and Russia. He says he feels a “psychological need” to gain the island and the US would get it “the easy way or the hard way”.
Foreign ministers from Greenland and Denmark visited the White House to meet Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, and JD Vance, the vice-president. Nonetheless, hopes of a compromise were dashed when, in the middle of the talks, the White House posted a meme showing a pair of dog sleds representing Greenland, facing a choice between an American flag and a lightning storm with the Chinese and Russian flags.
The caption read: “Which way, Greenland man?”
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