Interferometric synthetic-aperture radar (InSAR) observations of southeast Greenland glaciers acquired by the Earth Remote Sensing Satellites (ERS-1/2) in 1996 were combined with ice sounding radar data collected in the late 1990s to estimate a total discharge of 46 ¿ 3 km3 ice per year between 62¿N and 66¿N, which is significantly lower than a mass input of 29 ¿ 3 km3 ice per year calculated from a recent compilation of snow accumulation data. Further north, Helheim Glacier discharges 23 ¿ 1 km3/yr vs 30 ¿ 3 km3/yr accumulation; Kangerdlugssuaq Glacier discharges 29 ¿ 2 km3/yr vs 23 ¿ 2 km3/yr; and Daugaard-Jensen Glacier discharges 10.5 ¿ 0.6 km3/yr vs 10.5 ¿ 1 km3/yr. The mass balance of east Greenland glaciers is therefore dominated by the negative mass balance of southeast Greenland glaciers (-17 ¿ 4 km3/yr), equivalent to a sea level rise of 0.04 ¿ 0.01 mm/yr. Warmer and drier conditions cannot explain the imbalance which we attribute to long-term changes in ice dynamics.