{"id":3623,"date":"2026-01-15T22:42:59","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T22:42:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/?p=3623"},"modified":"2026-01-15T22:42:59","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T22:42:59","slug":"europe-deploys-troops-to-greenland-as-trump-eyes-u-s-takeover","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/?p=3623","title":{"rendered":"Europe Deploys Troops to Greenland as Trump Eyes U.S. Takeover"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Welcome back to World Brief, where we\u2019re looking at <strong>Europe<\/strong> deploying troops to <strong>Greenland<\/strong>, a deadly <strong>U.S.<\/strong> immigration crackdown in <strong>Minnesota<\/strong>, and internet blackouts disrupting <strong>Uganda<\/strong>\u2019s presidential election.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3><strong>Prioritizing Arctic Security<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Several European countries <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/greenland-united-states-denmark-trump-vance-rubio-meeting-b10f5151008f1f18a788dc0751473c0e\">deployed<\/a> troops to Greenland on Thursday in a pointed message against U.S. ambitions to acquire the Danish territory. Although the military buildup appears small, this symbolic display of European unity aims to demonstrate that a U.S. takeover of the island is unnecessary to safeguard the Arctic from NATO\u2019s adversaries.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-nosnippet=\"\">\n<p>Welcome back to World Brief, where we\u2019re looking at <strong>Europe<\/strong> deploying troops to <strong>Greenland<\/strong>, a deadly <strong>U.S.<\/strong> immigration crackdown in <strong>Minnesota<\/strong>, and internet blackouts disrupting <strong>Uganda<\/strong>\u2019s presidential election.<\/p>\n<div class=\"newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode-fallback\">\n<h2 class=\"dek-heading\">\n                <\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/category\/world-brief\/\">Sign up<\/a>  to receive World Brief in your inbox every weekday.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<form data-shortcode-newsletter=\"world_brief\" class=\"newsletter-unit-signup newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode email-capture--step-1 newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode-world_brief\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-world_brief newsletter-shortcode-world_brief\">\n<div class=\"show-on-email-capture--signed-up hide-from-newsletter-subscriber newsletter-unit-signup--shortcode--container\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-unit newsletter-row\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-world_brief\">\n<h2 class=\"dek-heading\">Sign up to receive World Brief in your inbox every weekday.<\/h2>\n<p>\n                        <button class=\"button\">Sign Up<\/button>\n                    <\/p>\n<div class=\"grid--flex newsletter-world_brief newsletter-signup-container\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"World Brief sign up form\" tabindex=\"0\">\n<div class=\"buttons\">\n<div class=\"hide-from-newsletter-subscriber privacy-policy-container\">\n<div class=\"privacy-policy-acknowledge\">\n<p><small>By submitting your email, you agree to the <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/privacy\/\" target=\"_blank\">Privacy Policy<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/termsofuse\/\" target=\"_blank\">Terms of Use<\/a> and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.<\/small><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\n    <label for=\"email-world_brief\">Enter your email<\/label><br \/>\n    <input type=\"email\" name=\"email\" class=\"hide-from-reg hide-from-sub\" id=\"email-world_brief\" aria-required=\"true\" required=\"\"\/><\/p>\n<p>    <button class=\"button button--signup \" data-newsletter-id=\"world_brief\" data-sourceid=\"In-article unit\" type=\"submit\"><br \/>\n      <span class=\"sign-up-text\">Sign Up<\/span><br \/>\n      <span class=\"loading-text\">Loading&#8230;<\/span><br \/>\n    <\/button>\n  <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<hr\/>\n<h3><strong>Prioritizing Arctic Security<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Several European countries <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/greenland-united-states-denmark-trump-vance-rubio-meeting-b10f5151008f1f18a788dc0751473c0e\">deployed<\/a> troops to Greenland on Thursday in a pointed message against U.S. ambitions to acquire the Danish territory. Although the military buildup appears small, this symbolic display of European unity aims to demonstrate that a U.S. takeover of the island is unnecessary to safeguard the Arctic from NATO\u2019s adversaries.<\/p>\n<p>Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden sent military staff to Greenland on Thursday to begin what they said were preparations for larger military drills later this year. Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said on Thursday that the intention was \u201cto establish a more permanent military presence with a larger Danish contribution\u201d on and around the island.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is clear that we now will be able to plan for a larger and more permanent presence throughout 2026,\u201d Poulsen <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/business\/aerospace-defense\/european-military-heads-greenland-trumps-ambitions-island-undeterred-by-talks-2026-01-15\/?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=Newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=Daily-Briefing&amp;utm_term=011526&amp;lctg=607f1056abd4f461f466319b\">added<\/a>. \u201cAnd that is crucial to show that security in the Arctic is not only for the Kingdom of Denmark. It is for all of NATO.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The European troop movements follow U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio failing to broker a deal with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt on the <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/06\/greenland-annex-trump-denmark-strategic-catastrophe\/\">United States\u2019 annexation ambitions<\/a>. Rasmussen cited a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/01\/15\/world\/europe\/trump-greenland-denmark-meeting.html\">fundamental disagreement<\/a>\u201d with the White House for the lack of a breakthrough on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, Poulsen and Motzfeldt are <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/denmark-greenland-trump-diplomacy-military-options-502b9d33a42fd368dd2e9f7db59ba353\">expected to meet<\/a> NATO chief Mark Rutte in Brussels to further discuss security in and around the Arctic.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. President Donald Trump has <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/08\/trump-greenland-arctic-threats-war-russia-china\/\">long coveted Greenland<\/a> for its <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/09\/trump-greenland-rare-earths-critical-minerals\/\">rich mineral deposits<\/a> and strategic Arctic location\u2014despite Denmark being a member of NATO and the United States having <a href=\"https:\/\/history.state.gov\/historicaldocuments\/frus1917\/d881\">legally recognized<\/a> Danish sovereignty over the island in 1916. In recent days, Trump has asserted that Copenhagen could be relied on to protect the territory if Russia or China were to try to occupy it.<\/p>\n<p>However, the Russian Embassy in Belgium told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/russia-says-nato-talk-moscow-beijing-being-threat-greenland-is-myth-create-2026-01-15\/\">local media<\/a> on Thursday that alleged Russian and Chinese threats toward Greenland are \u201cfictitious.\u201d \u201cThe instigators of these bellicose plans appeal to mythical challenges that they themselves generate,\u201d the embassy said, appearing to refer to the United States.<\/p>\n<p>Beijing has similarly accused Washington of using supposed Chinese threats as \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/13\/greenland-trump-china-russia-threat-territory-invasion\/\">pretext<\/a>\u201d for its own actions.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation led by the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foreign.senate.gov\/press\/dem\/release\/ranking-member-to-join-bipartisan-bicameral-congressional-delegation-to-copenhagen-led-by-senator-coons\">announced<\/a> this week that several lawmakers from both chambers will begin a two-day visit to Copenhagen on Friday to express solidarity with the Danish government.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/s3.documentcloud.org\/documents\/26482860\/cnn-poll-greenland-venezuela-foreign-policy.pdf\">CNN poll<\/a> published on Thursday, 75 percent of Americans oppose U.S. efforts to seize Greenland.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3><strong>Today\u2019s Most Read<\/strong><\/h3>\n<hr\/>\n<h3><strong>What We\u2019re Following<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Deadly immigration crackdown. <\/strong>Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/posts\/115899252938886431\">threatened<\/a> on Thursday to invoke the Insurrection Act in the U.S. state of Minnesota, after a deadly shooting by a federal immigration officer last week led to widespread protests. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.brennancenter.org\/our-work\/research-reports\/insurrection-act-explained\">Insurrection Act<\/a> allows the U.S. president to deploy military forces or federalized National Guard troops inside the United States to quell rebellions or enforce the law in certain situations\u2014actions that are usually barred by the Posse Comitatus Act. Trump has previously sent National Guard troops to Democrat-run cities\u2014such as <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/06\/09\/los-angeles-anti-ice-protests-trump-national-guard-newsom-immigration\/\">Los Angeles<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/08\/28\/troops-national-guard-soldiers-washington-dc-crime\/\">Washington D.C.<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/10\/09\/trumps-national-guard-chicago-portland-deploment-court-military\/\">Chicago<\/a>\u2014as part of the White House\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/06\/17\/trump-authoritarianism-newsom-california-marines-national-guard\/\">immigration crackdown<\/a>, but those troops <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2026\/01\/15\/nx-s1-5678612\/minneapolis-insurrection-act-trump-threats\">were not allowed<\/a> to engage in law enforcement actions, such as making arrests and conducting searches.<\/p>\n<p>Unrest in Minnesota ignited on Jan. 7, when a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good. According to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Good was one of several \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/01\/10\/us\/rennee-good-ice-shooting-minnesota.html\">agitators<\/a>\u201d who were trying to block ICE agents from leaving a Minneapolis neighborhood. However, video footage appears to show Good driving away from the agents\u2014not toward them\u2014when she was killed, sparking questions as to whether her death was legally justified.<\/p>\n<p>On Wednesday, an immigration officer <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/government\/trump-threatens-funding-states-over-sanctuary-cities-clashes-intensify-2026-01-14\/?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=Newsletter&amp;utm_campaign=Daily-Briefing&amp;utm_term=011526&amp;lctg=607f1056abd4f461f466319b\">shot and wounded<\/a> a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis who the Department of Homeland Security said was trying to flee a traffic stop. The incident sparked further protests across the city, with some demonstrators hurling rocks, ice, and fireworks at law enforcement agents who fired tear gas.<\/p>\n<p>Trump and Noem must \u201cend this occupation,\u201d Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said during a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/minnesota\/news\/minnesota-governor-tim-walz-statewide-address-ice-federal-agents-operation-metro-surge\/\">rare primetime address<\/a> late Wednesday. \u201cNews reports simply don\u2019t do justice to the level of chaos and disruption and trauma the federal government is raining down upon our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Election blackouts. <\/strong>Sweeping internet blackouts across Uganda caused <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/01\/15\/world\/africa\/uganda-election-museveni.html\">widespread disruptions<\/a> to the country\u2019s presidential election on Thursday. Government authorities cut web access and limited mobile services earlier this week ahead of the vote, claiming that such actions were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/africa\/uganda-orders-two-rights-groups-halt-work-days-before-election-2026-01-13\/\">necessary to curb<\/a> \u201cmisinformation, disinformation, electoral fraud and related risks.\u201d Security forces also detained hundreds of supporters of opposition candidate Bobi Wine in the lead-up to the vote, <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/11\/27\/uganda-elections-museveni-violence-kampala\/\">all but ensuring<\/a> that incumbent Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni can extend his 40-year grip on power.<\/p>\n<p>The United Nations and rights groups, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amnesty.org\/en\/latest\/news\/2026\/01\/uganda-internet-shutdown\/\">Amnesty International<\/a>, denounced the government\u2019s actions as violating democratic practices.<\/p>\n<p>Museveni, 81, first took office in 1986 after leading a five-year rebellion. He has <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2021\/02\/12\/uganda-president-museveni-elections-bobi-wine-opposition-us\/\">previously accused<\/a> the opposition of fraudulently obtaining extra ballots to try to rig the vote in its favor, and he has reorganized the country\u2019s electoral commission so that all of its members are hand-chosen by the president.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Wine <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cx2xn1yvgr4o\">claimed<\/a> widespread \u201cmassive ballot-stuffing,\u201d without providing evidence. And locals have reported Ugandan police using live rounds and tear gas to disperse peaceful rallies. The election results are expected to be announced over the weekend.<\/p>\n<p><strong>U.S. plans for Venezuela. <\/strong>U.S. forces <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/venezuela-sanctioned-oil-tanker-seized-a415e247fca429b00b9fbcf6b6cd90a5\">seized<\/a> a sixth sanctioned oil tanker with alleged ties to Venezuela in the Caribbean on Thursday. \u201cThe only oil leaving Venezuela will be oil that is coordinated properly and lawfully,\u201d U.S. Southern Command <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Southcom\/status\/2011798070816612578\">wrote<\/a> on X, accusing the vessel of \u201coperating in defiance of President Trump\u2019s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.\u201d The Guyana-flagged tanker, named the <em>Veronica<\/em>, is believed to be part of <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2025\/10\/02\/russia-shadow-fleet-pushpa-drones\/\">Russia\u2019s shadow fleet<\/a>; it previously went by the name <em>Galileo<\/em> and was owned and managed by a Russian company.<\/p>\n<p>The oil seizure comes as the White House puts greater <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/09\/oil-trump-venezuela-maduro\/\">political and economic pressure<\/a> on Caracas\u2019s administration, led by interim leader Delcy Rodr\u00edguez. On Thursday, a Venezuelan government envoy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/01\/14\/world\/americas\/venezuela-diplomat-us-visit-washington.html?campaign_id=9&amp;emc=edit_nn_20260115&amp;instance_id=169318&amp;nl=the-morning&amp;regi_id=159637444&amp;segment_id=213695&amp;user_id=3a92aa035d8e7d51a6ba63375b87c152\">traveled<\/a> to Washington to meet U.S. officials. The representative, a close ally of Rodr\u00edguez, hopes to thaw U.S.-Venezuela tensions by reopening the Venezuelan Embassy in the United States.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, though, Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/venezuela-maria-machado-meets-trump-white-house-2026-01-15\/\">hosted<\/a> Venezuelan opposition figure Mar\u00eda Corina Machado for lunch at the White House on Thursday; Machado had previously suggested that she might give her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump during the meeting as a token of her gratitude for U.S. forces capturing President <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/09\/legal-case-maduro-venezuela-trump-new-york\/\">Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/a> earlier this month; however, after the meeting, she <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/phildstewart\/status\/2011886728676598143?s=20\">refused to say<\/a> whether she did so. Trump has <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/04\/venezuela-maduro-trump-machado\/\">refused to endorse<\/a> Machado for president, saying earlier this month that \u201cshe doesn\u2019t have the support within\u2014or the respect within\u2014the country.\u201d Machado was barred from running in Venezuela\u2019s 2024 presidential election.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h3><strong>Odds and Ends<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>It wasn\u2019t all work and no play for Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung during <a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/13\/japan-takaichi-south-korea-lee-china-xi-taiwan\/\">their meeting<\/a> on Tuesday. After the serious business of state was concluded, the two Asian leaders whipped out their drumsticks for a <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/japan-korea-kpop-bts-takaichi-lee-drums-243faf64ebc377a1d6a4db53e723c5d1?user_email=6b04284e4d00370f16d3dac0a626e01bf24d86e4d6995646867da6aa680488d0&amp;utm_medium=Morning_Wire&amp;utm_source=Sailthru_AP&amp;utm_campaign=Morning%20Wire%20Wed_Jan%2014_2026&amp;utm_term=Morning%20Wire%20Subscribers\">surprise cultural exchange<\/a>, playing iconic K-pop songs such as BTS\u2019s \u201cDynamite\u201d and \u201cGolden\u201d from the movie <em>Kpop Demon Hunters<\/em>. \u201cJust as we respected our differences and harmonized our rhythms, I hope that Korea and Japan would deepen cooperation and move closer to each other step by step,\u201d Lee later <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Jaemyung_Lee\/status\/2011225579463589959\">wrote<\/a> on X, thanking Takaichi\u2014an avid heavy metal fan\u2014for the jam session.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2026\/01\/15\/european-troops-greenland-denmark-trump-nato-russia-china\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome back to World Brief, where we\u2019re looking at Europe deploying troops to Greenland, a deadly U.S. immigration crackdown in Minnesota, and internet blackouts disrupting Uganda\u2019s presidential election. Prioritizing Arctic Security Several European countries deployed troops to Greenland on Thursday in a pointed message against U.S. ambitions to acquire the Danish territory. Although the military [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3624,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3623","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politcical-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3623","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3623"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3623\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/firearmupgrades.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}