Meloni urges NATO-led Arctic coordination amid U.S. Greenland pressure

Italy’s prime minister pressed allies to manage Arctic security through NATO and other multilateral channels, rejecting unilateral steps after provocative U.S. statements about Greenland heightened transatlantic tensions. Speaking around the public presentation of Rome’s new Arctic strategy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said U.S. concerns were “serious” but insisted Italy would not back any U.S. military seizure of Greenland.

Meloni framed the solution as collective and coordinated. She urged NATO to develop “a coordinated presence” in the High North to “prevent tensions, preserve stability and respond to interference from other actors,” and warned against acting “in a scattered fashion.” The government presented the policy paper in Rome with Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Defense Minister Guido Crosetto and University and Research Minister Anna Maria Bernini, signaling a unified cabinet posture on the region.

The document and Meloni’s remarks reiterated Italy’s Arctic Council observer status since 2013 and stressed adherence to international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. The paper highlights geostrategic drivers behind the policy shift: melting ice opening new shipping routes, expanded access to energy and mineral resources, and what it described as growing Russian and Chinese interest in the Arctic. It ties Russia’s renewed Arctic military build-up to broader security dynamics unleashed by the war in Ukraine and characterizes allied responses as part of a wider deterrence posture.

Italian ministers and defense officials said national forces have already been conducting Arctic-focused exercises and reconnaissance “for some time.” Defense Minister Crosetto criticized fragmented national deployments and framed Italy’s contribution as part of alliance operations, saying the country’s activities were not about “sending 15 soldiers to Greenland.” Meloni noted that a ground military intervention would be “very difficult,” while preserving the option of increased participation in NATO-coordinated operations.

The prime minister also sought to defuse concerns about direct U.S. military action. She said she did not believe the United States would resort to force to seize Greenland and portrayed Washington’s messaging as a warning that it “will not accept actions by foreign powers.” Those remarks come amid public statements by the U.S. president that have drawn new attention to Greenland’s strategic value and prompted allied planning.

Denmark and Greenland have repeatedly and publicly rejected proposals to sell the island and have reaffirmed Danish sovereignty, underscoring the diplomatic stakes if rhetoric escalates. Rome’s policy paper and Meloni’s emphasis on NATO are presented as an attempt to bind allies to a common legal and operational framework and to avoid unilateral moves that could provoke confrontation with Moscow or Beijing.

Beyond the High North, Meloni signaled Rome’s readiness to take active roles in other arenas of U.S.-European security diplomacy, including implementation of a U.S.-backed Middle East peace plan and the formation of a Gaza “Board of Peace,” illustrating a broader Italian effort to position itself as a bridge between transatlantic priorities.

The immediate test for NATO will be whether allies can translate Rome’s call for coordination into a clear, legally grounded architecture for Arctic security that balances deterrence, alliance solidarity and the diplomatic protections afforded to sovereign territories in the region.