The UK is working with Nato allies to bolster security in the Arctic, which would include Greenland, in the face of increased threats in the region from Russia and China.
Ministers and officials refused to be drawn on whether British personnel would be specifically sent to Greenland, but insisted that the Arctic Circle and High North remain a priority for the UK and Nato allies.
It comes amid growing threats from Donald Trump that he wants control of the island and has not ruled out using force to seize the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
The US President believes the island is vital to America’s security, warning that both Moscow and Beijing could seek to take the land without US intervention.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said discussions about securing the High North against Russia and China were part of Nato’s “business as usual” rather than a response to the US military threat.
Plans for a possible Nato mission to Greenland which could involve British soldiers, warships and planes being deployed there are, according to The Sunday Telegraph, being drawn up.
But Alexander told Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg the report “possibly reads something more into business as usual discussions amongst Nato allies than there actually are”.
She said the UK agreed with Trump that the Arctic Circle “is becoming an increasingly contested part of the world with the ambitions of [Vladimir] Putin and China”.
“Whilst we haven’t seen the appalling consequences in that part of the world that we’ve seen in Ukraine, it is really important that we do everything that we can with all of our Nato allies to ensure that we have an effective deterrent in that part of the globe against Putin.”
Officials said the UK shared Trump’s view that Russia’s increased aggression in the region must be deterred, adding that it takes the protection of the Arctic and High North “extremely seriously”.
The US President has said he wants to get control over Greenland, which has a strategic location and natural resources, and “if we don’t do it the easy way, we’re going to do it the hard way”.
But former UK ambassador to the US, Lord Mandelson, said he did not believe Trump would use the military against a Nato ally.
“President Trump is not going to land on Greenland, take Greenland by force,” he said.
“He’s not a fool. What’s going to happen is there’s going to be a lot of discussion, a lot of consultation, a lot of negotiation and at the end of the day, we are all going to have to wake up to the reality that the Arctic needs securing against China and Russia.
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“And if you ask me who is going to lead in that effort to secure, we all know, don’t we, that it’s going to be the United States.”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “The UK should offer to send troops to Greenland as part of a joint Nato operation under Danish and UK command.
“If Trump is serious about security, he’d agree to participate and drop his outrageous threats. Tearing the Nato alliance apart would only play into the hands of Putin.”
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