Arctic security experts rebutted President Donald Trump’s claims that Russian and Chinese military forces are massing near Greenland, calling the assertions factually unsupported, as Trump continued to press for U.S. acquisition of the self-governing Danish territory and floated military force as an option.
Trump has made Greenland a stated national security priority in his second term, arguing the island will fall to China or Russia without American action — but three of his central claims about the situation do not hold up to scrutiny, according to Arctic researchers, Greenland officials, and historical records.
Ships and Submarines
Trump said the United States must take control of Greenland to prevent a Chinese or Russian takeover, telling reporters: “We need that because if you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyers, there are Chinese destroyers and, bigger, there are Russian submarines all over the place. We’re not gonna have Russia or China occupy Greenland, and that’s what they’re going to do if we don’t.”
Experts said the claim is false. “That statement makes no sense in terms of facts,” said Andreas Østhagen, research director for Arctic and ocean politics at the Fridtjof Nansen Institute in Oslo. “There are no Russian and Chinese ships all over the place around Greenland. Russia and/or China has no capacity to occupy Greenland or to take control over Greenland.”
Experts say Russia operates primarily in the Barents Sea, off the Scandinavian coast, while both China and Russia have a presence in the Bering Sea south of Alaska. Lin Mortensgaard, an expert on the international politics of the Arctic at the Danish Institute for International Studies, said there are probably Russian submarines in the broader Arctic region near Greenland, but no surface vessels. Joint Chinese-Russian military exercises in the Arctic have taken place closer to Alaska, she said.
Greenland’s business minister, Naaja Nathanielsen, said she was not aware of any Chinese or Russian military presence near the island. “Not that we are aware of,” she said when asked about Trump’s claim. “We don’t detect an actual threat,” she added. “America is still recognized as quite a big superpower, and I don’t see any appetite from Russia or China to destabilize this.”
Greenland residents expressed similar skepticism. Lars Vintner, a heating engineer in Nuuk who said he frequently goes sailing and hunting in the waters near the capital, told the Associated Press: “The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast food market.” Hans Nørgaard, another Greenlander, said Trump’s claims are “fantasy.”
Denmark’s Defenses
Trump also dismissed Denmark’s military presence in Greenland, saying: “You know what their defense is? Two dog sleds.”
In fact, Denmark’s Sirius Dog Sled Patrol is an elite naval unit that conducts long-range reconnaissance and enforces Danish sovereignty across the Arctic wilderness. Experts said the patrol is well suited to the terrain.
“Remember, transportation of the area is either by sea or by air. There are no highways,” said Steven Lamy, an international relations professor and Arctic security expert at the University of Southern California. “You can’t basically get in a car or a Bradley vehicle or tank or anything and go up there. So they have dog sleds.”
Denmark also maintains surface patrol ships and surveillance aircraft in the region. Last year, the Danish government announced a roughly 14.6 billion-kroner ($2.3 billion) defense agreement with the governments of Greenland and the Faroe Islands to strengthen military surveillance and sovereignty capabilities. The package includes three new Arctic naval vessels, two additional long-range surveillance drones, and expanded satellite capacity.
Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command, headquartered in Nuuk, oversees surveillance and military defense of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The U.S. Department of Defense also operates Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, which supports missile warning, missile defense, and space surveillance for the U.S. and NATO under a defense treaty the two countries signed in 1951.
Historical Claims
Trump also questioned the basis for Denmark’s claim to Greenland, saying: “The fact that they had a boat land there 500 years ago doesn’t mean that they own the land. I’m sure we had lots of boats go there also.”
Historical records show Greenland has been continuously inhabited since approximately 2,500 B.C., when the first humans traveled from what is now Canada after a narrow strait separating the island from North America froze over. Norse explorer Erik the Red arrived around A.D. 985. Denmark’s modern colonization began in 1721, when Lutheran missionary Hans Egede arrived and began efforts to convert the Indigenous population. Greenland formally became a Danish colony in 1814.
Østhagen noted a parallel to American history. “It’s the same logic about the U.S. and sovereignty, right? You have a couple of boats arriving from Europe and now you own the United States of America,” he said. “The Indigenous population was there before you guys.”
Greenland became a self-governing territory within the Danish kingdom in 2009 and holds the right to full independence when requested by local voters.
Ulrik Pram Gad, a senior researcher and Arctic security expert at the Danish Institute for International Studies, said postwar international norms have moved away from territorial seizure. “We shouldn’t just grab and go to war,” he said. “Rather, it should be peoples who have their self-determination.”