President Trump has set his sights on the island of Greenland, and for good reason. Strategically, Greenland sits between North America and the Arctic Circle, making it an ideal location to serve as an early warning system in the event of a ballistic missile attack from China or Russia. Control of the island would also allow the US to monitor the nefarious activity of any enemy warships or submarines in the region.
In a recent Truth Social post, Trump laid out his rationale. Here are some excerpts from that post:
We have subsidized Denmark, and all the Countries of the European Union, and others, for many years by not charging them Tariffs, or any other forms of remuneration.
Therefore, it is imperative that, in order to protect Global Peace and Security, strong measures be taken so that this potentially perilous situation end and quickly, and without question.
The United States has been trying to do this transaction for over 150 years. Many presidents have tried, and for good reason, but Denmark has always refused. Now, because of the Golden Dome, and Modern Day Weapons Systems, both Offensive and Defensive, the need to ACQUIRE is especially important.
…this [Golden Dome] highly complex system can only work at its maximum potential and efficiency, because of angles, metes, and bounds if this Land is included.
The United States is immediately open to negotiation with Denmark and/or any of these Countries that have put so much at risk, despite all that we have done for them. Including maximum protection, over so many decades.
It is true that for years the United States has been the ATM for the European Union and NATO. Before Trump took office in 2016, many of the European nations protected by NATO were not spending the required 2% of GDP for their own defense. After being strong-armed by Trump, these countries finally followed the treaty’s guidelines and started chipping in their fair share. However, Croatia, Portugal, Italy, Canada, Belgium, Slovenia, Luxembourg, and Spain are still below the 2% mark.
It is not just that American taxpayers, who are financially strapped and in some cases working two jobs just to get by, have to foot the bill for Europeans who can take six-week holidays each summer. By insisting that NATO countries pay for their own defense, Trump advocated for the American people.
Trump is also behind the American people in his quest to secure Greenland, as rare-earth minerals are found deep beneath its frozen surface. These minerals are needed to manufacture a wide range of technologies, including smartphones, lasers, magnets, and advanced military equipment. Denmark relies on the United States military to protect this territory through NATO, without giving us any control over its valuable resources whatsoever.
Homeland Security Advisor to the president, Steven Miller, states it this way, “Denmark is a tiny country with a tiny economy and a tiny military. They cannot defend Greenland. So they want us to spend hundreds of billions of dollars defending a territory for them that is 25% bigger than Alaska at a hundred percent American expense, but they say while we do this, it belongs 100% to Denmark. It’s a raw deal. It’s an unfair deal.”
And the truth is that Europe is no longer an ally of the United States. Many of these countries have been funding both sides of the Ukrainian/Russian conflict by purchasing oil from Russia and funneling weapons to Ukraine. Boris Johnson, former Prime Minister of the UK, is rumored to have stymied a 2022 peace deal to end this war.
Many European countries have clamped down on free speech, imprisoning “inappropriate” social media posts, such as simply retweeting or displaying cartoons. There is also a total loss of Christian values and France is seeing a rise in anti-Christian violence in Ireland, which has been promoting radical liberal causes.
We do not advocate the forceful military seizure of Greenland. Instead, our country has added to its land mass by negotiated monetary deals like the Louisiana Purchase, Florida, Alaska, and the U.S. Virgin Islands – and this deal should be no different. It is important to note that, over the years, territory has changed hands, and this time in history is no exception.
Many also argue that Trump should devote all his attention to domestic issues (e.g., reducing inflation, stabilizing interest rates, deporting illegal criminals) and stop with the foreign policy initiatives. Unfortunately, in the world we now live in, poor foreign policy can adversely impact domestic policy. The world is too interconnected for us to be total isolationists.
The one question that remains is what if Denmark and the EU are unwilling to sell Greenland to the United States? It might mean the end of NATO, and perhaps that’s a good thing.
But let’s hope that the tariffs and other forms of diplomacy will prevail without a military intervention.