<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;" id="isPasted">COPENHAGEN: Criticised by the US for having neglected the defence of Greenland, Denmark&rsquo;s defence minister said Wednesday that it would &ldquo;strengthen&rdquo; its military presence in the Arctic territory and was in dialogue with allies in NATO.<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;"> <p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;">&ldquo;We will continue to strengthen our military presence in Greenland, but we will also have an even greater focus within NATO on more exercises and an increased NATO presence in the Arctic,&rdquo; Troels Lund Poulsen wrote in a statement to AFP, hours before a meeting between Greenlandic, Danish and US officials at the White House on the future of the autonomous Danish territory.<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;"> <p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;">Lund Poulsen added that Denmark &ldquo;has an ongoing dialogue with its allies about new and increased activities in 2026.&rdquo;<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; color: rgb(65, 65, 65); font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; line-height: 2;"> France to open consulate in Greenland in February&nbsp;France will open a consulate in Greenland on Feb. 6, the foreign minister said Wednesday, calling the move a &ldquo;political signal&rdquo; over the strategic Danish territory, which US President Donald Trump has vowed to seize. The comments came on the day Denmark&rsquo;s top diplomat is to meet senior US officials at the White House for talks over the future of the vast, mineral-rich Arctic island. Since returning to office nearly a year ago, Trump has repeatedly mused about taking over Greenland from longtime ally and European Union member Denmark. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told French RTL broadcaster that the decision to open the consulate was taken last summer, when President Emmanuel Macron visited Greenland in a show of support. &ldquo;For my part, I went there at the end of August to plan the consulate, which will open on Feb. 6,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a political signal that&rsquo;s associated with a desire to be more present in Greenland, including in the scientific field.&rdquo; &ldquo;Greenland does not want to be owned, governed or integrated into the United States. Greenland has made the choice of Denmark, NATO and the (European) Union,&rdquo; he said. Greenland&rsquo;s leader has said the island would choose to remain an autonomous territory of Denmark over the United States. Trump has said the United States needs Greenland due to the threat of a takeover by Russia or China. The two rival powers have both stepped up activity in the Arctic, where ice is melting due to climate change, but neither claims Greenland, where the United States has long had a military base.

Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen (R) and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen hold a doorstep after a meeting with the Parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee at Christiansborg in Copenhagen, Denmark, on January 13, 2026.

Europe

France is opening a consulate in Greenland in February, calling the move a 'political signal' over the strategic Danish territory, which US President Donald Trump has vowed to seize.

Denmark to boost military presence on Greenland

Shortly after French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu resigned less than a month into the job, President Emmanuel Macron was seen walking by the River Seine in Paris, deep in a phone conversation, with only his security detail at a discreet distance. Whom Macron was speaking to and what he was discussing remain unclear. But the image symbolized the president&rsquo;s growing political isolation as he faces a dwindling set of options &mdash; all of them fraught with risk. With his second and final presidential term set to end in 2027, analysts say Macron has four possible courses of action. None offers an easy solution. Reappoint Lecornu Macron appears to have kept this option open after Bruno Le Maire &mdash; the loyal former finance minister whose appointment as defense minister triggered the crisis &mdash; announced his intention to withdraw from the government. The Elysee Palace then announced that Lecornu had been given two days to present an action plan, with the prime minister saying he would hold &ldquo;final discussions&rdquo; with &ldquo;all the political forces.&rdquo; However, it remains uncertain whether Lecornu can form a government, let alone survive a confidence vote in parliament, where his allies are in the minority. Even if successful, his reappointment would not be automatic, a French presidential official said. &ldquo;The fundamentals of the problem remain the same: with or without Le Maire, the other parliamentary blocs don&rsquo;t agree on the budget, pension reform, immigration, and so forth,&rdquo; said Paul Taylor, senior visiting fellow at the European Policy Centre. A new prime minister If Macron appoints a new prime minister, it would mark the eighth of his presidency and the third this year &mdash; hardly a sign of stability. The left has demanded that he name someone who would back a more expansionary budget, but it is unclear if Macron would do so. Even then, the new premier might not enjoy broad support across the divided left. &ldquo;Another PM could be toppled within weeks &mdash; making a new legislative election almost inevitable,&rdquo; said the Eurasia Group risk analysis firm. Early elections Macron has long resisted calling early elections after his gamble on snap polls in summer 2024 backfired, leaving France with a hung parliament. Yet, a presidential official said Macron would &ldquo;assume his responsibilities&rdquo; if Lecornu fails in the coming days &mdash; a comment widely interpreted as a signal he may dissolve parliament. Such elections could boost the far-right National Rally of Marine Le Pen, potentially giving her prot&eacute;g&eacute; Jordan Bardella a path to the premiership. Still, the outcome remains uncertain. &ldquo;It is unclear whether new elections would produce a different result than the one from last July,&rdquo; said Celia Belin, head of the Paris office of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Resignation Macron has repeatedly dismissed the idea of resigning before his term ends, which would trigger an early presidential election. But pressure on him is mounting. &ldquo;If new snap elections do not allow for a governing majority, the political crisis could turn into a regime crisis. In that case, President Macron&rsquo;s ability to stay in power could be questioned,&rdquo; Belin said.

French outgoing Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, who resigned just a day after naming his government, delivers his statement at the Hotel Matignon in Paris, Monday, Oct. 6, 2025. (Stephane Mahe/Pool via AP)

France faces political uncertainty after Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s resignation. President Emmanuel Macron must decide between reappointing him, naming a new premier, or calling early elections as parliamentary deadlock continues.

Articles tagged with "Macron"

Denmark to boost military presence on Greenland

Macron's dilemma: What next for France after PM resigns?