America\u2019s ambitions demonstrate that Western Europe is no longer protected by the very system it helped to build<\/p>\n
American political culture is drifting openly toward the annexation of Greenland. This may sound surreal to European ears, but it is not an exotic idea in Washington. It follows a logic that is deeply rooted in how the US historically became a great power and how it still proves its strength today.
\nThe United States rose through territorial expansion at the expense of weaker neighbors. It seized land from those who could not defend it. There is no serious reason to assume that this instinct has disappeared. The only reliable guarantee of borders is the ability to fight for them. And history shows something very simple: the US does not attack those who can resist.
\nModern world politics suggests that Western Europe is no longer among those who can resist.
\nThat is why, from Washington\u2019s point of view, the real question is not whether Greenland will eventually be absorbed into direct American control, but when. Western European states, and Denmark specifically, are among the least dangerous targets imaginable. They are harmless not only militarily, but psychologically: they are unlikely to respond in any serious way.
\nIn American strategic culture, refusing to exploit such an insignificant position would contradict the fundamentals of foreign policy thinking. The conclusion becomes unavoidable: the annexation of Greenland, peacefully or by force, is inevitable.<\/p>\n
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Over the past few days we have seen an escalating series of statements and initiatives from American representatives. They range from internet \u201cteasers\u201d and political provocation to official remarks and even draft bills in Congress. The overall message is clear: Greenland should fall under direct US control. And just as importantly, the discussion itself is meant to create an impression in Europe, and in the wider world, that the outcome is pre-determined.
\nWestern European politicians have responded with predictable panic.
\nGermany, for instance, has proposed a joint NATO mission called Arctic Sentry. The initiative is absurd, but revealing. It is Berlin\u2019s attempt to respond to claims from the American president and others that Greenland is threatened by Russia and China, and that the island is supposedly defenseless. Direct consultations between senior German and American diplomats are reportedly scheduled in the coming days.
\nBut it is difficult to imagine Washington taking Germany\u2019s proposal seriously, because the issue is not about deterring mythical threats from Moscow or Beijing. It is about Washington\u2019s own intentions.
\nThe German idea draws inspiration from NATO\u2019s Baltic Sea operation Baltic Guardian, which has been running for several years. But the Baltic Sea has little to do with American military or economic interests. Even the least intelligent member of the Finnish parliament should be able to understand this. That is precisely why NATO and Western Europe are free to play their games there.
\nGreenland is different.<\/p>\n
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Trump is not bluffing about Greenland and here\u2019s why<\/p>\n
Any attempt to frame Greenland as a NATO matter only exposes the alliance as a theater production, performing threats in order to justify foreign policy rituals. These Europeans are accustomed to imitating danger and imitating response. They appear to believe they can do it again.
\nIt is unlikely to work.
\nMeanwhile, most of the world views this spectacle with indifference. Russia, China, India and many others see the Greenland drama primarily as another lesson in how relations inside the so-called \u201ccollective West\u201d are structured. It is simply a more visible version of what has always been there.
\nThere is nothing new in the fact that Americans are prepared to violate norms, including international law. The difference is that this time they are openly testing these norms against their own allies.
\nFrom Russia\u2019s perspective, the situation does not pose a direct threat to our interests. The US can deploy weapons in Greenland even today. Its presence does not fundamentally change the military situation in the Arctic, nor does it threaten shipping along the Northern Sea Route. The US still lacks a serious fleet of military icebreakers, and it remains unclear when \u2013 or whether \u2013 it will acquire one.
\nChina, too, is essentially indifferent to Greenland becoming American property. Greenland does not threaten China\u2019s trade in the Arctic because the only real issue of interest to Beijing is the Northern Sea Route. And the US military presence on the island does not materially affect Chinese security interests.<\/p>\n
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On the contrary, in the context of Taiwan, Beijing watches with curiosity as the Americans undermine their own empire\u2019s ideological foundations, including the principles of international law. Once the balance of power settles, it is always possible to return to old norms. Or indeed to codify new ones.
\nBut for Western Europe, Washington\u2019s aggressive noise around Greenland feels like the death sentence for what remained of the half-continent\u2019s relevance.
\nFor decades, its politicians considered themselves a \u201cspecial\u201d element of global affairs. Not fully sovereign perhaps, but privileged. They were happy to violate the sovereignty of other states across the world, insisting that this was humanitarianism, democracy, civilization. Yet they never seriously imagined the same logic could be applied to them.
\nThe entire content of what Western Europeans loudly call \u201ctransatlantic solidarity\u201d or a \u201ccommunity of values\u201d lies precisely in this exceptional status. Their part of Europe\u2019s role was to serve as a morally decorated extension of American power, a satellite that believes it is a partner.
\nNow it is the US itself that is delivering a potentially fatal blow to that illusion.
\nEven if the annexation of Greenland is postponed, watered down, or delayed by unforeseen complications, the fact that it is being discussed seriously is already catastrophic for Western European political legitimacy. It undermines what remains of their credibility in the eyes of their own citizens and the rest of the world.<\/p>\n
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Why Venezuela and Greenland are not so different<\/p>\n
Every state must justify its existence.
\nRussia\u2019s legitimacy rests on the ability to repel external threats and pursue an independent foreign policy. China justifies itself through organization, stability and prosperity for its citizens. India\u2019s legitimacy is grounded in holding together peace in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious civilization.
\nIn every case, legitimacy is tied to the state\u2019s ability to influence the most important aspects of people\u2019s lives. Not to mention being able to rely on internal resources to do so.
\nBut modern Western European states justify themselves differently. They justify their actions to their citizens through the idea of exceptional status, the right to look down on other countries and civilizations. If Americans can simply deprive the EU of territory, then they become equal to countries like Venezuela or Iraq: states which Washington attacks with impunity.
\nThis is why Greenland matters more than Greenland.
\nWestern European politicians still do not understand the main point. The US wants Greenland, of course, because it is valuable Arctic territory. Geography that matters in a changing world. Direct control over territory is often preferable to indirect use through allies.
\nBut the deepest motive is more psychological and political: Washington wants to act as it sees fit.
\nIn the US, disregarding all external norms \u2013\u00a0recognizing only internal American rules \u2013 is increasingly part of how the state gains legitimacy in the eyes of its citizens. The ability to seize something from a weaker neighbor becomes proof that such a state is not only strong, but necessary.
\nDonald Trump was elected precisely because he promised to restore American statehood. Greenland will not be the only issue where this restoration expresses itself.
\nIn other words: Greenland is not a dispute about the Arctic. It is a demonstration of how American power is validated, and a demonstration that Western Europe is no longer protected by the very system it helped to build.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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