Danish military forces participate in an exercise with troops from several European NATO members in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland on Sept. 17, 2025.
Photographer: Ebrahim Noroozi/APFor Danish Army, the Threat to Greenland Isn’t Trump But Russia
With NATO’s Arctic footprint expanding, Denmark is raising its military commitment to a territory seen as crucial to security — and focusing east.
Private Mads Hansen acknowledges that it can get lonely surrounded by nothing but mountains, drifting ice and a vast polar sea.
One of three Danish soldiers permanently stationed at a former mining outpost called Mestersvig on the desolate coast of eastern Greenland, his role includes patching roofs ripped away by storms, plowing back meter-high snowdrifts, training sled dogs for their next patrol, or stitching them up after a fight.