Danish Arctic Commander: NATO Defense Requires Training (Full Transcript)

Name: Danish Arctic Commander: NATO Defense Requires Training
Uploaded: 2026-01-17T03:05:30+00:00
Channel: GoTranscript
Description: In Nuuk, Denmark’s Arctic commander says NATO’s northern flank defense depends on training, declining to weigh in on Trump-era Greenland pressure.

In Nuuk, Denmark’s Arctic commander says NATO’s northern flank defense depends on training, declining to weigh in on Trump-era Greenland pressure.

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[00:00:00] Speaker 1: As a Dane who suffered a lot of losses in Afghanistan, 52 soldiers killed, that's as many per capita as the United States, is it disappointing to you that we're in this position? Frankly it is. I spoke with Zoran Andersson here in Nuuk in Greenland, he's Denmark's top military commander for the entire Arctic region. He's the one that's going to be leading the NATO military training exercises that are coming up here. Already troops are beginning to arrive and he told me their training, their exercise, the number of troops is only going to get bigger and bigger and bigger from here. It's very clear that at the moment President Trump's putting a huge amount of pressure on the Danish government on Greenland because he wants to have Greenland. Is this a message to President Trump that NATO can provide security here?

[00:00:53] Speaker 2: I will not go into any political thoughts but for me it is if you are going to defend the kingdom, going to defend NATO's northern flank, you simply have to train.

[00:01:04] Speaker 1: And part of the defense of the kingdom requires Danish troops, if fired upon by others, to fire back. If US troops came here in an aggressive way, President Trump says you might have to do this the hard way. If US troops came here and fired, would Danish troops fire back their NATO ally?

[00:01:20] Speaker 2: I think it's a hypothetical question actually because I don't think a NATO ally will attack another NATO ally.

Summary

A journalist in Greenland asks Denmark’s Arctic military commander about growing NATO training exercises amid perceived U.S. pressure under President Trump to acquire Greenland. The commander avoids politics, emphasizing that defending the Danish kingdom and NATO’s northern flank requires training. When pressed on whether Danish troops would fire back if attacked by U.S. forces, he calls it hypothetical and says he does not believe one NATO ally would attack another.

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Title

Danish commander stresses NATO training in Arctic amid Greenland tensions

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Keywords

Greenland

Denmark

NATO

Arctic

military exercises Remove

Trump

security

defense

Nuuk

northern flank Remove

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Key Takeaways

Denmark is expanding NATO-linked Arctic training exercises in Greenland.
The Danish Arctic commander frames the buildup as necessary preparedness to defend NATO’s northern flank.
Questions about U.S. intentions toward Greenland create political pressure, but the commander refuses to engage politically.
The commander treats the idea of a NATO-on-NATO attack as unlikely and hypothetical.

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Sentiments

Neutral: The exchange is tense and concerned but largely matter-of-fact; the commander avoids political commentary and focuses on training and alliance assumptions.

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