Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt (L) and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen (C-L) meet with US Senator Ruben Gallego (C-R), and US Senator Angus King (R) at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, USA, 14 January 2026. Photo: VCG

A number of European countries have increased military presence to protect Greenland as the Trump administration ramps up pressure to take the island with anything less than that "unacceptable." The move came amid a high-level meeting among the US, Denmark and Greenland, which yielded no breakthrough on the standoff but ended up with "fundamental disagreement" on the issue. Meanwhile, for finding pretext for US' own move in the Arctic region, the US has once again repeated the old trick of unreasonably making other countries as excuse.

A Chinese expert said on Thursday that the troop deployments to the island are primarily a warning signal, intended to deter US actions and reassure local residents.

Speaking to reporters after a sit-down at the White House complex with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Denmark's foreign minister, Lars Lokke Rasmussen, said that a "fundamental disagreement" remained with Trump, reported The New York Times.

Rasmussen added that the US President was insisting on "conquering" Greenland which was "totally unacceptable," and said there were "red lines" the US could not cross.

The talks came as allies in Europe moved quickly to show support for Greenland, BBC reported.

Denmark's defense ministry has announced that it will conduct additional military exercises on the island featuring "aircraft, vessels and soldiers" from its own military and those of its NATO allies. At least three member countries — Germany, France and Sweden — said on Wednesday that they would contribute to the exercises, per BBC.

French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed in a X post on Thursday that France will participate in the joint exercises organized by Denmark in Greenland, Operation Arctic Endurance, at the request of Denmark. He added that the first French military elements are already on their way, with others to follow.

Sweden on Wednesday pledged to send armed forces to the territory at Denmark's request. And Germany said in a statement that it would send a "reconnaissance team" to Greenland to "explore the general conditions for possible military contributions to support Denmark in ensuring security in the region."

The UK has also sent a military officer to Greenland as Denmark steps up its military presence in the Arctic and High North, per British media outlets on Thursday.  

Responding to increasing pressure that the US has been applying on the island's future, the European Parliament has formally expressed its "unequivocal support to Greenland and Denmark," euronews reported on Wednesday.

A statement adopted by the Conference of Presidents, which comprises the leaders of the political groups, said the Parliament "unequivocally condemns the statements made by the Trump administration regarding Greenland, which constitute a blatant challenge to international law, to the principles of the United Nations Charter and to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a NATO ally".

Zhao Junjie, a senior research fellow at the Institute of European Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Thursday that major European powers have shown rare unity, adopting tough languages and clearly opposing US power politics. The troop deployments to the island, the expert said, serves more as a warning gesture, aimed at constraining US actions and reassuring local residents. 

Europe is also seeking to advance the integration of its security policy and accelerate the development of its own peacekeeping capabilities, Zhao said.

For the US side, the expert noted that with significant criticism within the US and consideration of public approval, US president's rhetoric is likely more a form of psychological deterrence and pressure rather than immediate military actions.

Following the meeting among the US, Denmark and Greenland, the White House posted a cartoon to X on Thursday of two Greenlandic mush teams with three huskies each, pointing towards the choice of the white pillars and the South Lawn or a tempestuous scene by the Great Wall of China and Red Square in Russia. Paired with the image, the official White House account posted a question: "Which way, Greenland man?"

The post also retweeted US President Donald Trump's message on Truth Social published on Wednesday, in which he said, "The United States needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security… NATO should be leading the way for us to get it." His post also repeated his old claim of using other countries as a pretext for US' pursuit. 

"Anything less than that is unacceptable," he concluded in the post.

The US' hype and untrue claims have been rejected by relevant parties for multiple times.

After the meeting with US officials on Wednesday, the Denmark foreign minister said Trump's comments about the "presence of Russian and Chinese warships" around Greenland were "not true," per the BBC.

"According to our intelligence, we haven't had a Chinese warship in Greenland for a decade or so," Rasmussen said, "There is not an instant threat from China or Russia that we cannot accommodate."

Responding to the US claims, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning on Monday lambasted the US should not use other countries as a pretext for seeking selfish gains, adding that countries' right and freedom to carry out activities in the Arctic in accordance with the law needs to be fully respected.