Lately, President Trump has shown an intensified interest in acquiring the sovereign country of Greenland for its strategic military positioning and rich resources. Going so far in a recent Fox Business interview, as to claim, “We’re going to have total access to Greenland, we’re going to have all the military access we want.” What Trump wants, he will clearly go to great lengths to obtain. This is evident through both the 25% tariffs imposed on imports from his adversaries and his breaches of international laws and agreements, including the UN Charter, NATO, and the European Union. Although Greenland has not been included in discussions, Europe is standing by the NATO alliance to protect it.
Since the beginning of Trump’s presidency, he has expressed his desire for the territory, stating its criticality to national security in the event of a dangerous war involving the U.S., with Greenland being used for military protection. Specifically, its position between Russia and the U.S. allows Russian activity to be monitored. Another benefit, according to BBC News, is its vast mineral resources, which are becoming more accessible by the day due to the melting of the ice. Its position between the Arctic and the North Atlantic Ocean also makes it economically advantageous, as it provides immediate access to Arctic naval shipping routes.
Trump’s actions towards acquiring Greenland have been aggressive. On January 17, Trump announced that from February 1, those that oppose his plan, such as Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland, would be charged a 10 percent tariff on their exports to the U.S. This would be raised to 25 percent if no deal was reached for the acquisition of Greenland. He also threatened to use force if needed: an offense against the NATO Treaty, as an armed attack by the United States on Greenland would call for Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty. This Article states that an attack against one member is an attack against all, and requires all members to assist the attacked party, ending the alliance, as Denmark (Greenland is part of Denmark’s territory), a NATO ally, would have to be defended against a U.S. attack. This also violates the UN Charter, as it prohibits the use of force against the political independence of another state.
Recently, Trump withdrew his threats to use force and impose trade tariffs on these eight countries. He began constructing a new framework of a plan with the leader of NATO, Mark Rutte. The public has not been given much information as to what this entails, but in the meantime, NATO is stepping up its Arctic security. It remains unclear whether Greenland, which has its own parliament, but is a dependent territory of Denmark, has agreed to a framework of a plan or even been consulted at all. “There can’t be a deal without having Greenland as part of the negotiations,” Sascha Faxe, a member of the Danish parliament, told Sky News on Wednesday, January 21.
Some of Greenland’s inhabitants feel that Trump’s choices resemble those of an autocratic leader, with his unpredictability filling them with the fear that their country may be under his control in only a matter of time. He is breaking the alliances and agreements that have kept the U.S. from engaging in major conflict, yet only time will tell if these decisions result in hurting the U.S. more in the long-term than benefitting it.
