NATO launches Arctic mission after Trump's Greenland threats

Andrea Palasciano, Bloomberg News on Feb 11, 2026

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NATO will boost its Arctic presence with a new mission after U.S. President Donald Trump prompted an alliance crisis over his attempts to take Greenland.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization announced the mission, dubbed “Arctic Sentry,” on Wednesday, a day before the group’s defense ministers gather in Brussels.

The move comes just weeks after Trump brought the transatlantic partnership to the brink of rupture with his claims over Greenland, a territory of NATO-ally Denmark. Trump ultimately relented, for now, after a meeting with alliance Secretary General Mark Rutte.

NATO said Arctic Sentry builds on that meeting and will allow the alliance to better coordinate its actions in the region.

The subject will inevitably come during the Thursday meeting.

NATO has been working to reinforce its Arctic presence since Trump started insisting in January that he be allowed to annex Greenland, a largely ice-covered island growing in strategic importance as global warming opens up more territory and shipping routes.

NATO launched a similar Eastern Sentry mission in 2025 after numerous Russian drones and even jets violated the alliance’s airspace. Like that endeavor, the Arctic Sentry mission will mainly reorganize existing assets.

The alliance’s Arctic members, including recent joiners Sweden and Finland, have long been calling for NATO to take the northern region more seriously.

Also on Thursday, officials will hear from U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby, author of the country’s recent National Defense Strategy.

Europeans are keen to learn more about Washington’s ongoing review of its forces, which is expected to result in a shift from Europe to Asia.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth won’t attend the meeting.