Trump’s Greenland Ambition Sparks NATO Rift and European Pushback
U.S. President Donald Trump has renewed controversy over Greenland, promising a forthcoming plan for the Arctic island that he says will be “very good for everybody,” including NATO, while European leaders warn against intimidation and threats to sovereignty.
Speaking to reporters, Trump declined to detail his proposal, saying only: “You’ll find out.” He added that Washington would “work something out where NATO is going to be very happy and where we’re going to be very happy,” arguing that U.S. control or influence over Greenland is necessary for national, regional, and global security.
Trump’s remarks follow a series of social media posts in which he openly reiterated his ambition to control Greenland, stating there was “no going back” on the idea. The posts were accompanied by mock-up AI-generated images and the release of private messages, including a text from French President Emmanuel Macron questioning Trump’s intentions on Greenland.
The issue has exposed growing divisions within NATO. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Macron delivered a sharp rebuke, declaring that Europe would not “give in to bullies” or be intimidated. “We do prefer respect to bullies, and we do prefer rule of law to brutality,” Macron said.
Denmark, which governs Greenland under its kingdom framework, has firmly rejected Trump’s demands. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she would not abandon Greenland, stressing that the decision was made long ago. “I am certainly not going to abandon Greenland,” she told reporters in Copenhagen.
Greenland holds significant strategic value due to its location along the shortest route between Europe and North America. The island plays a critical role in U.S. and NATO defense architecture, particularly in missile detection and early warning systems. The U.S. military maintains a permanent presence at Pituffik Space Base, which hosts radar systems linked to Space Delta 4 and is positioned ahead of NORAD’s North Warning System designed to detect Arctic missile launches.
A 1951 agreement between the United States and Denmark allows Washington to build and operate military bases in Greenland under the NATO framework, provided Danish and Greenlandic authorities are notified. According to Kristian Soeby Kristensen, a senior researcher at the University of Copenhagen’s Centre for Military Studies, Denmark has historically accommodated U.S. security needs due to its limited capacity to defend Greenland independently and its reliance on U.S. security guarantees through NATO.
In response to Trump’s latest comments, Danish lawmakers have agreed to increase defense spending related to Greenland, acknowledging years of underinvestment in the island’s security.
Trump has framed the dispute within his broader criticism of NATO burden-sharing. He reiterated his call for member states to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP, claiming he has done more for the alliance than any other leader. “NATO has to treat us fairly too,” Trump said, questioning whether allies would come to America’s aid despite U.S. commitments to them.
The escalating dispute over Greenland now threatens to strain NATO unity and has raised concerns in Europe about the risk of a new trade war, as EU leaders weigh their response to Trump’s renewed tariff threats. Analysts warn that Trump’s push to wrest sovereignty over Greenland from a fellow NATO member could undermine the alliance that has underpinned Western security for decades.
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