UK defence minister pledges ‘vital’ role in NATO’s Arctic Sentry mission

LONDON, Feb 11 (Reuters) – British armed forces will play a vital part in NATO’s Arctic Sentry mission, Defence Minister John Healey is to say on a visit to Norway on Wednesday, while also pledging to double the number of UK troops to the country to 2,000 over three years.

The mission is aimed at bolstering security in the Arctic region, which includes Greenland, after U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated remarks that he wants to acquire the island – an overseas, autonomous territory of NATO member Denmark.

“Demands on defence are rising, and Russia poses the greatest threat to Arctic and High North security that we have seen since the Cold War,” Healey was quoted as saying in the government statement.

“We see (Russian President Vladimir) Putin rapidly re-establishing military presence in the region, including reopening old Cold War bases.”

Healey is expected to discuss proposals for the mission with his counterparts at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday.

The meeting will take place against the backdrop of Trump’s accusations that European allies have failed to properly secure Greenland against Russia or China, comments that have strained U.S. ties with Western military alliance NATO.

The government has committed to the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War following pressure from Trump on Europe to do more to secure the continent.

The move comes as the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force security alliance plans major military activity in the High North, with hundreds of personnel due to be deployed across Iceland, the Danish Straits and Norway in an exercise due in September, the government said.

(Reporting by Muvija MEditing by Alexandra Hudson)