Which countries have troops in Greenland?published at 17:34 GMT
17:34 GMT
By Tamara Kovacevic
President Trump threatened eight European countries with tariffs on their exports to the US after claiming they had “journeyed to Greenland, for purposes unknown”.
The countries have sent troops to the island – which Trump wants to acquire – as part of efforts by Denmark to increase its Arctic training there, external, along with Nato allies.
We’ve been speaking to the countries’ militaries over the past two days to find out how many troops they currently have in Greenland.
Image source, ReutersImage caption,
Danish soldiers were seen disembarking at Nuuk airport, Greenland, on Tuesday
Denmark
The Danish authorities would not confirm how many extra troops they had sent to Greenland but said Denmark was “strengthening its presence” on the island.
Germany
A spokesperson for the German government told BBC Verify a 15-strong team had been sent consisting of “experts from Joint Force Command, the Army, the Air Force and the Navy… made up of specialists in logistics, pilots, sailors, infrastructure and planning”.
Sweden
The Swedish government told BBC Verify that three military officers had been sent: “At present, there are no plans for them to return to Sweden.”
The Netherlands
The Dutch government sent us a press release, external confirming that two naval officers had taken part in reconnaissance and provided operational and logistical expertise. They “have completed their work as planned. They are departing Greenland today (Monday)”.
Norway
The Norwegian government told us on Monday the two officers were sent to “assess opportunities for further cooperation with Allies to strengthen security in the Arctic. […] The initial planning work is now complete, and we plan for the personnel to return to Norway this week”.
Finland
The government of Finland also sent two officers, external on “a reconnaissance mission to explore exercise opportunities”.
UK
Defence Secretary John Healey announced, external on 14 January “at the request of the Danish government there is one UK military officer that is part of this reconnaissance group”.
The MOD says it is currently not able to comment on whether that officer is still in Greenland or not.
France
Initial reports suggested 15 soldiers were deployed, external. However, neither the defence ministry nor the president’s office would confirm this number.