Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is considering sending troops to Greenland for NATO military exercises—a direct response to Donald Trump’s escalating threats to seize the Arctic island, according to CBC News.
Two senior Canadian officials told CBC that a small contingent of Canadian soldiers could be deployed to Greenland by the end of this week. The move would put Canada squarely in opposition to the U.S. on the Greenland question, marking yet another low point in relations between the longtime allies.
THE DETAILS: During a press conference in Beijing on Friday, Carney made Canada’s position crystal clear: “The future of Greenland is a decision for Greenland and for the kingdom of Denmark.” He added that Canada’s “full partnership stands” with Denmark under NATO, including the alliance’s mutual defense provisions in Article 5.
Let’s be clear about what Article 5 means: an attack on one NATO member is an attack on all. Carney didn’t explicitly say Canada would fight the U.S. if Trump invaded Greenland—but invoking Article 5 in this context is about as close as you can get without saying the quiet part out loud.
Canada isn’t alone. Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, and Finland have all announced “Operation Arctic Endurance,” a military exercise in Greenland designed to signal collective defense against Trump’s acquisition campaign.
BUT BUT BUT: Trump, of course, sees this European military presence as the real threat. On Truth Social Saturday, he called the situation “very dangerous for the Safety, Security, and Survival of our Planet”—which is rich coming from the guy threatening to take another country’s territory by force.
He also announced that eight European countries would face 10 percent tariffs starting February 1 if they don’t fall in line, rising to 25 percent by June 1 unless a “purchase agreement” is reached. The affected nations—Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland—issued a joint statement reaffirming “full solidarity with the people of Greenland” and warning that a U.S. military seizure could fracture NATO itself.
Trump’s Truth Social post also included this gem: Denmark “currently have two dogsleds as protection, one added recently.”
He apparently thinks mocking a NATO ally’s defense capabilities makes his territorial ambitions seem more reasonable.
WHY IT MATTERS: This isn’t just diplomatic theater. NATO—the alliance that has underpinned Western security since World War II—is facing an unprecedented test: its most powerful member threatening to seize territory from another member state.
Ottawa’s relationship with Washington has already deteriorated sharply since Trump’s second term began, strained by tariff threats, accusations about fentanyl, and Trump’s repeated “suggestions” that the U.S. should annex Canada entirely. Now Carney is weighing whether to put Canadian boots on the ground in direct opposition to American expansionism.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen summed up the stakes: “We will always protect our strategic economic and security interests. We will face these challenges to our European solidarity with steadiness and resolve.”
NATO’s unity may depend on what happens in the Arctic over the coming days.