A North American Aerospace Defense Command F-16 Fighting Falcon lands at Pituffik Space Force Base in Greenland on Oct. 7, 2025. (Maxim Dewolf/U.S. Air Force)
STUTTGART, Germany — Major airfield upgrades are in the works for the U.S. military’s base in Greenland even as a diplomatic crisis between the United States and NATO allies in Europe ratchets up over President Donald Trump’s push to take control of the territory.
The plan calls for spending up to $25 million for a new runway lighting system, river crossing bridge and related projects to improve flight operations at Pituffik Space Base, the military’s Arctic hub, according to a new government solicitation for bids.
The solicitation, posted Jan. 8 on the U.S. government’s contracting website, noted the difficulty of carrying out infrastructure projects in Greenland’s austere landscape.
“The region is glaciated, and the existing soil is generally permafrost, which exists from 1 to 6 feet below the surface to a measured depth of 1,600 feet,” the notice said.
The aim is to begin work in the early part of 2026, the solicitation said.
The U.S. has about 200 troops in Greenland who are tasked with supporting an early warning ballistic missile defense mission. While the mission in Greenland involves a small number of troops, it’s not unusual for the military to make big investments at the base, which has grown in strategic importance over the years. For example, in 2022 the U.S. Air Force awarded a nearly $4 billion contract to ensure ongoing operations at Pituffik. And in 2023, four Air Force F-35s deployed for the first time at the base to show off the ability to operate in harsh terrain.
The territory also has emerged as a geopolitical flashpoint.
On Saturday, Trump upped the ante in his push to acquire Greenland, saying he will impose new tariffs on several European countries in lieu of a deal for the United States to take possession of the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
Several European leaders lashed out at Trump over his new demand. French President Emmanuel Macron in a social media post linked supporting Greenland’s territorial integrity to the situation in Ukraine.
“No intimidation or threat will influence us — neither in Ukraine, nor in Greenland, nor anywhere else in the world when we are confronted with such situations,” said Macron, adding that Europeans would “respond in a united and coordinated manner” to the tariff threat.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson also responded to Trump, saying, “We won’t allow ourselves to be blackmailed. Denmark and Greenland alone decide questions that affect Denmark and Greenland.”
Trump has argued that the United States needs Greenland for national security reasons given Russia’s and China’s interests in the High North, where melting sea ice is opening new transportation corridors and potential access to valuable natural resources.
NATO countries also have acknowledged the need for a more robust military presence in Greenland to secure the alliance’s position in the Arctic.
During the Cold War the United States had numerous bases in Greenland and thousands of troops deployed there. Denmark has said it is open to a larger American footprint in Greenland and that existing security cooperation arrangements would allow such an expansion.
So far, however, Trump has not indicated whether he is open to a security arrangement that would leave Greenland as a territory belonging to Denmark.
