U.S. President Donald Trump’s renewed proposal to annex Greenland has created lots of anxiety in Europe. While Trump has been talking about annexing the island under Denmark for some time now, most didn’t think that he would actually do it. But after American forces conducted a military operation in Venezuela and captured its president, Nicolás Maduro, along with his wife, the entire situation has changed.
Trump reiterated his position of the US ‘needing’ to annex Greenland for security purposes soon after capturing Maduro, and now the world has taken it as a serious threat. As a result, European leaders are intensifying discussions on a coordinated response to it, viewing it as a potential threat to NATO unity and Arctic sovereignty.
In a joint statement issued by the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Denmark yesterday, the alliance emphasised that “Greenland belongs to its people,” and any unilateral U.S. action would undermine international law and collective security efforts in the region. However, White House seems not to be concerned about these statements, as its officials have said that President Donald Trump has been discussing “a range of options” to acquire Greenland, including the use of the military. This came just hours after the joint statement of European leaders.
Even though U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has publicly ruled out an invasion, insisting the goal is a purchase from Denmark, European leaders are not taking the matter lightly and are now involved in serious discussions on how to tackle the situation. Efforts are on to prepare a joint response to a possible American invasion.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on Wednesday announced that France is collaborating with allies to formulate a contingency plan should the U.S. proceed with annexing Greenland. “We want to take action, but we want to do so together with our European partners,” Barrot said during preparations for a trilateral meeting with his German and Polish counterparts.
Barrot said the subject would be raised at his meeting with the foreign ministers of Germany and Poland, scheduled later. “Regardless of the form of intimidation and its source, we have begun work at the Quai d’Orsay to prepare ourselves to respond and not to respond alone,” he further said.
A senior German government source stated that Berlin is “closely working together with other European countries and Denmark on the next steps regarding Greenland.” As per reports, Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul is working on a plan with his counterparts to respond to the threat. The plans include European deterrence if American forces attempt to take Greenland by force. They are also planning to increase NATO presence near Greenland.
Last year, when Trump talked about annexing Greenland, France had even discussed with Denmark on sending French troops to Greenland, but Denmark didn’t want to proceed with that, Barrot had said earlier. But now, with the direct threat of U.S. military action, Denmark will welcome European military intervention.
Denmark has taken a firm lead in the response. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said that if U.S. invades or seizes Greenland from Denmark, it will mean the end of NATO, as Denmark is a NATO member. “If the United States decides to attack another NATO country, then everything would stop — that includes NATO and therefore post-World War II security,” Frederiksen said.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen described the U.S. claims as based on “misunderstandings” and urged a shift from “shouting match” to “sensible dialogue.” Alongside Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt, Rasmussen requested an urgent meeting with Rubio.
Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen welcomed the European support, calling for “respectful dialogue” rooted in international law and territorial integrity. In a social media post, he urged Trump to give up “fantasies” of annexing Greenland. “That’s enough now. No more pressure. No more insinuations. No more fantasies of annexation,” he wrote.
If President Trump actually proceeds with capturing Greenland with force, this will damage the U.S.-Europe relations, and will lead to collapse of NATO.
