The U.K. is deploying a carrier strike group, including warships and fighter jets, to the North Atlantic and Arctic as part of a NATO-backed security push this year.
Why It Matters
The Arctic and surrounding waters, including areas around Greenland, have become a growing focus for NATO as strategic competition intensifies in the region.
It comes as President Donald Trump has repeatedly raised the issue of Greenland’s security and its importance to U.S. and allied interests, drawing renewed attention to the High North.
What To Know
Britain will deploy a carrier strike group with Royal Navy warships, Royal Air Force F‑35 fighter jets, and helicopters to the North Atlantic and Arctic in 2026, British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told the Munich Security Conference today.
The UK government said it will send a carrier strike group to the North Atlantic and the High North under an operation known as Operation Firecrest, led by HMS Prince of Wales, the Royal Navy’s largest warship, as allies expand their Arctic focus.
According to Britain’s Ministry of Defence (MoD), the strike group will operate alongside the United States, Canada, and other NATO allies, with activity taking place across the North Atlantic and Arctic.
“With growing concern over Russian operations in the Greenland-Iceland-U.K. gap and the increased risk to critical undersea cables and pipelines, the deployment will send a clear message that the U.K. will always defend its waters, protect critical infrastructure, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with its Allies,” the MoD said in a statement.
Parts of the deployment will fall under NATO’s new Arctic Sentry framework, which coordinates allied military activity in the region.
The U.K. government says the mission is intended to bolster regional security and strengthen NATO’s deterrence posture at a time of increased military activity in northern waters.
NATO officials and analysts have tracked frequent displays of Russian military power in the Arctic over the last year, including aircraft and submarine operations, prompting the alliance to integrate Arctic vigilance under Arctic Sentry.
Britain’s carrier group is also expected to work closely with U.S. forces, including operations near the North American East Coast, with U.S. aircraft set to operate from HMS Prince of Wales.
NATO’s broader deterrence posture along its eastern flank—spanning the Arctic to the Black Sea—remains defensive and includes air policing, integrated air and missile defense, and multinational forward land forces, according to the alliance.
What People Are Saying
U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey MP said: “I’m proud that we’re stepping up U.K. leadership on High North and Atlantic security. This deployment will help make Britain warfighting ready, boost our contribution to NATO, and strengthen our operations with key allies, keeping the UK secure at home and strong abroad.”
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, U.K. PM Starmer told Trump: “Be in no doubt, if called on, the U.K. would come to your aid today.”
He added: “I can announce today that the U.K. will deploy our carrier strike group to the North Atlantic and the High North this year, led by HMS Prince of Wales, operating alongside the U.S., Canada and other NATO allies in a powerful show of our commitment to Euro-Atlantic security.”
“I am proud that my party fought for NATO’s creation, what our then-foreign secretary Ernie Bevin called a spiritual union of the West.
“And we’ve shown our fidelity to that ideal, asserting each other’s sovereignty as we did on Greenland, and crucially, coming to each other’s aid under Article 5, we fought together in Afghanistan at terrible cost to many in my country and across many allied countries.
“So I say to all NATO members, our commitment to Article 5 is as profound now as ever, and be in no doubt, if called on, the U.K. would come to your aid today.”
Mette Frederiksen, Danish prime minister, said: “Of course not [you can’t put a price on Greenland] … We must respect sovereign states and respect people’s rights for self‑determination.”
Mark Rutte, NATO Secretary General, said: “The Arctic and the High North are increasingly important for our collective security. In the face of Russia’s increased military activity and China’s growing interest in the High North, it was crucial that we do more.”
What Happens Next
The carrier strike group is due to deploy later this year, with further details on exercises, port visits, and allied operations expected as planning under NATO’s Arctic Sentry framework continues.