What’s our relationship with Europe under Trump’s presidency?
Donald Trump has tossed around some ideas that the US should extend into Canada and the Danish territory of Greenland, and even southward, including the Panama Canal. Trump’s indications that international borders can be redrawn, by force if necessary, are particularly triggering in Europe.
His words seem to be contrary to the argument European leaders and Ukrainian Zelenskyy are trying to impress on Russian President Vladimir Putin.
And many European leaders, who’ve learned to expect the unexpected from Donald Trump and have realized that actions don’t always follow his words, have been measured in their response, with some taking a “nothing-to-see-here” view instead of vigorously defending European Union member Denmark.
Analysts, though, say that even words can damage US-European relations ahead of Trump’s second term. So, before this all gets too confusing, let’s break it down. Does Donald Trump REALLY have beef with Europe? Continue reading for the facts!
France and Germany weigh in
Germany and France cautioned Trump against threatening Greenland after the US president-elect refused to rule out using military force to grab Denmark’s autonomous territory. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said, “The principle of the inviolability of borders applies to every country… no matter whether it’s a very small one or a mighty one”.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said, “There is no question that the European Union would let other nations of the world attack its sovereign borders.” Last week, Trump repeated his desire to obtain Greenland, stating that the Arctic island was “critical” for economic and national security. He has frequently expressed an interest in purchasing Greenland, having considered the idea in 2019 during his first term as president.
Denmark, who is a long-time US ally, has explained that Greenland isn’t for sale and belongs to its occupants. Greenland’s prime minister, Egede, is going for independence from Denmark, yet he, too, has made clear that the territory isn’t for sale. Chancellor Scholz spoke about how there was a “certain incomprehension” about reports coming from the incoming US administration. “The principle of the inviolability of borders applies to every country, whether in the east or the west.”
Analysts find Trump’s words troublesome.
European security analysts believe that there’s no actual likelihood of Trump using the military against NATO ally Denmark. But they have expressed profound disquiet. Analysts warned of turbulence ahead for international norms, trans-Atlantic ties, and the NATO military alliance… not least because of the rising tension with member Canada over Trump’s repeated recommendations that it become a US state.
“There is a possibility, of course, that this is just … a new sheriff in town,” stated Flemming Splidsboel Hansen, who specializes in foreign policy, Russia, and Greenland at the Danish Institute for International Studies. “I take some comfort from the fact that he’s now insisting that Canada should be included in the US, which suggests that it’s just political bravado. But the damage has already been done.
And I cannot remember a previous incident where an important ally, in this case, the most important ally, would threaten Denmark or another NATO member state.” Hansen expressed his fears that NATO might fall to bits even before Trump’s inauguration.
“I worry about our understanding of a collective West,” he declared. “What does this even mean now? What may this mean, say, one year from now, two years from now, or at least by the end of this second Trump presidency? What will be left?”
A diplomatic response in Europe
A few European officials where governments depend on US trade, technology, energy, investment, and defense cooperation for security have highlighted their belief that Trump doesn’t intend to march troops into Greenland.
“I think we can exclude that the US in the coming years will try to use force to annex territory that interests it,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni stated. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz carefully pushed back, saying “borders must not be moved by force” but not mentioning Donald Trump by name.
Recently, as President Zelenskyy encouraged Trump’s incoming administration to continue supporting Ukraine, he said: “No matter what’s going on in the world, everyone wants to feel sure that their country will not just be erased off the map.”
Since Vladimir Putin marched his troops across Ukrainian borders in 2022, Zelenskyy and allies have been fighting, at significant cost, to defend the principle that has underpinned the international order since the end of World War II: that powerful nations can’t simply devour others. The French and British foreign ministers have said that they can’t predict a US invasion of Greenland.
Yet, French Foreign Minister Barrot described Trump’s statements as a wake-up call. “Do we think we’re entering into a period that sees the return of the law of the strongest?” the French minister stated. “‘Yes.” Last week, the prime minister of Greenland, a semiautonomous Arctic territory that isn’t part of the EU but whose residents are EU citizens, as part of Denmark, expressed that its residents don’t want to be Americans but that he’s open to greater cooperation with the United States.
“Cooperation is about dialogue,” leader Múte B. Egede declared. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the US “our closest ally” and stated: “We have to stand together.”
Security concerns are a huge motivation
Some analysts and diplomats see a common denominator in Trump’s eyeing of the Panama Canal, Canada, and Greenland: securing waterways and resources to strengthen our nation against any potential foes. French-based analyst Alix Frangeul-Alves said Trump’s language is “all part of his “Make America Great Again” manner.”
Greenland’s soils, she stated, are rare earth vital for advanced and green technologies. China overpowers global supplies of valuable minerals, which Europe, the United States, and others view as a security risk. “Any policy made in Washington is made through the lens of the competition with China,” believe analysts who focus on US politics for the German Marshall Fund.
Some viewers said that Donald Trump’s proposed methods are filled with danger. Security analyst Alexander Khara noted that Trump’s assertion that “we need Greenland for national security purposes” reminded him of Putin’s remarks on Crimea when Russia seized the strategic Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine.
Indicating that borders can be adjustable is “a perilous precedent,” said the director of the Centre for Defense Strategies in Kyiv. “We’re in a time of transition from the old system based on norms and principles,” he declared, and “heading to more conflicts, chaos and uncertainty.”
NATO’s influence
Denmark is a member of the NATO alliance led by the US, as are France and Germany. Scholz stressed that “NATO is the most important instrument for our defense and a central of the transatlantic relationship.” Earlier this week, Jean-Noël Barrot told France Inter radio: “If you’re asking me whether I think the United States of America will invade Greenland, my answer is no.
“Have we entered into an era that sees the return of the survival of the fittest? Then, my answer is yes. “So, should we allow ourselves to be intimidated and overcome with worry, clearly not. We must wake up, build up our strength,” the French foreign minister added. France and Germany are the two leading members of the European Union, frequently described as its main driving force.
Yet, imagining how the EU might prevent any potential attack is difficult. It doesn’t really have any defensive capabilities of its own, and most of its 27 member states are part of NATO. Donald Trump made the comments at a free-wheeling news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, less than a few weeks before he gets sworn in for his second term as president of the United States.
When asked if he would rule out using economic or military force to take over the Panama Canal or Greenland, Trump stated: “No, I can’t assure you on either of those two. “But I can say this: we need them for economic security.”
So what are your thoughts? Are we doomed to fight with Europe? Please feel free to share your thoughts with Trending Now in the comments section below.
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