COPENHAGEN, August 4 — Against the vast, frozen backdrop of the Arctic, Denmark is reaching back into its own military history. The revival of conscript deployments to Greenland marks a return to a practice abandoned decades ago. The world’s largest island occupies a critical geostrategic position in the Arctic, a region increasingly contested due to its natural resources, shipping lanes, and military significance.
Greenland’s geostrategic position has always been imposing. But what is at stake has shifted.
Climate change has opened new maritime routes across the Arctic and made accessible rare earth minerals, oil and gas reserves that were once locked beneath the ice. Against this backdrop, the island has become a focal point for heightened concerns that extend beyond the region itself. Russia has reopened Soviet-era Arctic military bases, reasserting a presence that had lain dormant since the Cold War.
China, for its part, has declared itself a “near-Arctic state.” Greenland’s defense has moved from a quiet administrative matter to a live strategic question. The island’s military significance is not new.
It is, however, newly acute. Denmark first deployed conscripts to Greenland during World War II and continued the practice through the Cold War, stationing troops to monitor Soviet activity and defend the island’s airspace. The last conscripts were withdrawn in the late 1950s as tensions eased.
Thule and the 1951 agreement
At the heart of that question sits Thule Air Base, a United States Space Force installation established in 1951. The base plays a vital role in missile defense and space surveillance, anchoring the American military presence in the region. Under the 1951 Defense Agreement between Denmark and the United States, Denmark retains responsibility for Greenland’s defense, while the U.S. maintains a permanent presence at Thule.
It is a division of labor that now carries new weight. The revival of conscript deployments is, in effect, Denmark’s answer to its obligations — both the letter of the 1951 agreement and the broader commitments of NATO membership.
The wider picture is one of rebalancing. Greenland’s importance has resurged, and Denmark is asserting sovereignty and meeting its NATO obligations in the Arctic.
