Nato countries discussed deploying troops to Greenland in response to Donald Trump threatening to use the US military to seize the Danish island.

Germany was among dozens of European allies understood to have held informal talks over “what Nato troops would do” if the US president followed through on his threats, diplomatic sources told The Telegraph.

Questions were even raised over whether Article 5, the Western military alliance’s mutual defence clause, could be invoked in the event of an American invasion of a fellow Nato member state.

It came after Mr Trump started his second term in the White House by openly considering a forcible takeover of Greenland, an autonomous part of Denmark.

The US president has said it would be an “unfriendly act” if Copenhagen refused to give up the Arctic island while Russia and China both push to bolster their presence in the area.

Berlin’s involvement in the clandestine discussions has attracted criticism from some of Nato’s most ardent backers of Ukraine given the refusal of Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, to consider a deployment of troops there.

“Berlin doesn’t want to send troops to Ukraine because the situation is ‘too ambiguous’ but is openly flying kites about sending Nato troops to Greenland,” a Nato diplomat told The Telegraph. “It’s a moral compass without a needle.”

Robert Brieger, an Austrian general in charge of the EU’s military committee, said it would send a “strong signal” to deploy Brussels-led forces to Greenland.

Mr Trump’s remarks have prompted divisions among European nations over how to react without causing a transatlantic crisis.

Mr Scholz has been Europe’s most vocal critic of Mr Trump over Greenland, declaring that “borders must not be moved by force” as an international principle, addressing his words in English “to whom it may concern”.

But Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister, has urged allies not to respond to the US president to avoid exacerbating the current tensions. She has welcomed US security concerns over the Arctic and promised to boost Denmark’s military presence on Greenland, but insisted the island is not for sale.

Ms Frederiksen has embarked on a European tour to privately secure the backing of EU member states and Nato allies, including a stop at Downing Street for talks with Sir Keir Starmer.

Denmark has unveiled plans to spend $1.5 billion (£1.2 billion) on two new inspection ships, two drones and two dog sled patrols to boost security on the island. It has also promised to upgrade an airfield to allow F-35 fighter jets to operate from Greenland.

France and Germany have openly touted sending European troops to join the Americans already stationed there, but some European leaders have suggested staging a more robust “fight back” against the US president’s overtures.

In discussions inside Nato’s headquarters in Brussels, member states have pondered whether Article 5, which states that a military attack on one ally is considered an attack on all, could be invoked if Mr Trump does sanction an invasion of Greenland.

However, the option was quickly ruled out because it would require the unanimous backing of Nato’s 32 member states, including the US. The mutual defence has only been triggered once in the alliance’s history, after the 9/11 attacks on America.

Article 4, which allows a national capital to launch emergency consultations if its “territorial integrity, political independence or security” is threatened, was seen as a more suitable measure. It is often considered in the context of Turkey and Greece as the best possible mechanism to address tensions between allies.

Talks over using Nato’s treaties to address Mr Trump’s Greenland comments have been kept out of the North Atlantic Council, Nato’s main political decision-making body, on which the US holds a seat.

A third option being debated is using Nato troops to plug security gaps in the Arctic to address the US president’s concerns.

Melting ice caps in the area are creating new shipping routes and opening up access to rare earth materials, which both Russia and China are seeking to control.

Mr Trump is concerned because the Pituffik Space Base in north-west Greenland is used by the US for crucial missile warning systems, as well as satellite and space surveillance.

Mark Rutte, Nato’s secretary-general, has attempted to defuse Mr Trump’s threats by offering to let the alliance ramp up its presence in the Arctic. “It’s absolutely clear that Trump is right when it comes to the high north, that we have to do more,” he said earlier this week.

vowiski:
lol…

Funny creatures..

Same NATO the US uses as bouncing ball?

femisplash:
I am having a difficult time replaying the scenario in my head, I'm having a brain fog - no mental clarity right now. Security experts and students of international relations can help me out. How will they pull this off?, would they put Trump and the US Congress on sedatives?. Are they only flying a kite that won't take off the ground?.

NothingDoMe:
The kite won't take off.

Why are they so scared of everything Trump says?He talked about Greenland in his first Tenure but did nothing.

Relax ffs!

femisplash:
I am having a difficult time replaying the scenario in my head, I'm having a brain fog - no mental clarity right now. Security experts and students of international relations can help me out. How will they pull this off?, would they put Trump and the US Congress on sedatives?. Are they only flying a kite that won't take off the ground?.

LegendHero:


This is what you need to understand, in the event of a full blown out war against USA and the rest of NATO, Russia and China will give tactical support to the rest of NATO.

USA alone cannot win against the rest of the world.

Just that I don’t see any scenario yet on this earth that will make the rest of NATO collabo with the Eastern bloc against USA.

LegendHero:


This is what you need to understand, in the event of a full blown out war against USA and the rest of NATO, Russia and China will give tactical support to the rest of NATO.

USA alone cannot win against the rest of the world.

Just that I don’t see any scenario yet on this earth that will make the rest of NATO collabo with the Eastern bloc against USA.

MadamExcellency:


Did you read what you wrote? What do you mean by the "rest of NATO"? There's nothing like that, Germany and Turkey have nothing in common. Can you imagine US withdrawing her support for Ukraine and the so-called "rest of NATO" were to fight Russia? What do you think will happen in a month?

Putin will not fight Trump. Never, take that to the bank.

MadamExcellency:
Fake news. NATO is USA and her pikins. Without USA, NATO will cease to exist.

The poster is just confused. NATO is trying to appease Trump by collectively wading off Chinese and Russian threats. It's a win for Donald Trump as US wouldn't bear the cost alone.

femisplash:


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2025/02/07/nato-countries-discuss-sending-troops-to-greenland/

MufasaLion:
Trump ain't bluffing.