Germany Bundeswehr soldiers leave Greenland
The Bundeswehr reconnaissance team is due to leave Greenland again today. The 15 soldiers will leave the Arctic island on a civilian plane for Copenhagen, a spokesperson for the Operational Command told the German Press Agency. Bild had previously reported. US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he would impose special tariffs on eight countries involved in the exploration mission.
18.01.2026, 13:59
SDA
The German team has only been in Nuuk since Friday evening German time to explore the conditions for military exercises. On Saturday evening, it was said that it was not possible to predict how long the stay would be.
Now the spokesman for the command and control team said that the team had completed its mission. "The results of the reconnaissance will be evaluated in the coming days."
On Saturday, US President Trump once again insisted that Greenland, which belongs to Denmark, be incorporated into the USA. He justified this with security concerns due to an alleged threat from China and Russia in the region.
Trump criticized the deployment of soldiers
Trump also strongly criticized the fact that Germany and other European NATO states had sent some soldiers on the exploratory mission at Denmark's invitation. Trump explained that the allies' soldiers were there "for unknown purposes". This was a "very dangerous situation" for the security, protection and survival of the planet.
Several NATO states, including Germany and France, had sent soldiers to the island. The question was whether the Arctic was safe and to what extent Germany and its NATO partners could contribute to this, according to the Ministry of Defense. Trump announced additional tariffs against these eight European states.
Unlike Trump, the European NATO allies are of the opinion that Greenland does not have to be taken over by the USA in order to protect the Arctic. Instead, this could be done by Nato as a group.
