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yesterday

Denmark Leads Greenland’s Largest Modern Military Drill Without U.S. Units

The exercise serves as a sovereignty showpiece during a tense stretch in U.S.–Danish relations over Trump’s push for control of Greenland.

Vessels patrol Greenland's southwestern fjords as part of Exercise Arctic Light on September 15.
Danish military forces participate in an exercise with hundreds of troops from several European NATO members in the Arctic Ocean in Nuuk, Greenland, Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Danish defense minister Troels Lund Poulsen attends a military exercise with hundreds of troops from several European NATO members in the Arctic Ocean in Nuuk, Greenland, Monday, Sept. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
CNN was invited on board the HDMS Niels Juel, a Danish air defense frigate deployed to Greenland for Exercise Arctic Light on September 15, 2025. The land, sea and air training mission is part of Denmark’s intensified military presence around its Arctic holdings.

Overview

  • Arctic Light 2025 runs September 9–19 with more than 550 troops from Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden and Norway training for joint responses in the North Atlantic and Arctic.
  • Denmark’s Arctic commander said U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was invited to observe, but no American military units were asked to participate.
  • Denmark is deploying a frigate, helicopters and F-16s, while France contributed a naval vessel, an air-refueling tanker and a drone unit.
  • Officials cite Russia’s long-term Arctic build-up and potential Chinese activity as planning scenarios, even as Danish commanders say Greenland faces no immediate conventional threat.
  • The drills cap a year of Arctic investments, including a 14.6 billion-kroner surveillance package and a more than $9 billion decision to buy European air defenses rather than U.S. Patriot systems.