Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has warned that if the United States forcibly annexes Greenland, it would result in the collapse of the American-led NATO military alliance.
The aim of the United States to take control of the Arctic island of Greenland, which has been an on-again-off-again goal of Washington since the middle of the 19th century and has recently been reiterated by President Donald Trump, has come into fresh focus following the remarkable U.S. military operation, which saw the toppling and capture of former Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro, demonstrating the willingness of the White House to take bold actions to achieve its goals on the world stage.
In comments reported by POLITICO, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, whose country currently owns the self-governing island, said that President Trump should be taken “seriously when he says that he wants Greenland.”
“But I will also make it clear that if the U.S. chooses to attack another NATO country militarily, then everything stops, including NATO and thus the security that has been established since the end of the Second World War,” she said.
President Trump has argued that Greenland is of vital national security importance to the United States due to its strategic location and large-scale mineral deposits, and therefore has so far refused to rule out using American military might to simply seize the territory from the Danes.
However, on Monday evening, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, Stephen Miller, downplayed the notion that the U.S. would need to resort to force to take control of the territory.
Noting that there are only 57,000 inhabitants of Greenland, Miller told CNN that there was “no need to even think or talk about” a military operation in Greenland. “Nobody is going to fight the US militarily over the future of Greenland. That doesn’t make any sense.”
“The real question is what right does Denmark have to assert control over Greenland? What is the basis of their territorial claim? What is their basis of having Greenland as a colony of Denmark?” Miller questioned.
“The US is the power of Nato. For the US to secure the Arctic region to protect and defend Nato and Nato interests, obviously Greenland should be part of the US. And so that’s a conversation that we’re going to have as a country. That’s a process we’re going to have as a community of nations,” he added.
Nevertheless, the renewed focus on the semi-autonomous island territory has sparked backlash across Europe, with the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom issuing a joint statement on Tuesday to demonstrate their apparent solidarity with Denmark over the issue.
“Greenland belongs to its people. It is for Denmark and Greenland, and them only, to decide on matters concerning Denmark and Greenland,” the leaders said.
“Arctic security remains a key priority for Europe and it is critical for international and transatlantic security. NATO has made clear that the Arctic region is a priority and European Allies are stepping up. We and many other Allies have increased our presence, activities and investments, to keep the Arctic safe and to deter adversaries. The Kingdom of Denmark – including Greenland – is part of NATO,” they wrote.
“Security in the Arctic must therefore be achieved collectively, in conjunction with NATO allies including the United States, by upholding the principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty, territorial integrity and the inviolability of borders. These are universal principles, and we will not stop defending them. The United States is an essential partner in this endeavour, as a NATO ally and through the defence agreement between the Kingdom of Denmark and the United States of 1951.”
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