Crystal Dike
Denmark has announced an additional $4.2 billion (£3.2 billion) in defence spending to strengthen security in the Arctic and North Atlantic regions, including Greenland, as part of its latest military expansion plan.
The package, unveiled on Friday, includes the purchase of 16 additional F-35 fighter jets from the United States at a cost of $4.5 billion, bringing Denmark’s total fleet of the advanced aircraft to 43.
“With this agreement, we significantly strengthen the capabilities of the Danish Armed Forces in the region,” said Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen in a statement.
The new funding will cover the acquisition of two Arctic patrol ships, maritime surveillance aircraft, drones, and early warning radar systems. It will also establish a new Arctic Command Headquarters in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, along with a new military unit under Joint Arctic Command.
An undersea communication cable linking Greenland and Denmark will also be financed under the plan, aimed at improving strategic and operational coordination.
Denmark worked on the defence package in collaboration with the governments of Greenland and the Faroe Islands.
“The task of the Armed Forces is to ensure security throughout the Kingdom — and, if necessary, to defend Greenland, the Faroe Islands and Denmark within the framework of NATO in all domains,” said Chief of Defence Michael Hyldgaard, speaking to Danish public broadcaster DR.
The Arctic has gained renewed geopolitical significance as a critical intersection between North America, Russia and Europe. Greenland, which remains part of the Kingdom of Denmark despite its autonomy, has drawn increasing international attention for its strategic location and untapped natural resources, including rare earth minerals, uranium, and iron.
Greenland also hosts a U.S. radar base and an American space facility dating back to the Cold War. Former U.S. President Donald Trump once described the island as “critical” to tracking Chinese and Russian military movements and even suggested that the United States should acquire Greenland — a proposal rejected by Greenland’s leadership, who said the territory “belongs to the people of Greenland.”