Returning from Davos to Washington, Trump announced that the United States would work with NATO to guarantee the island's safety, and that any of the tasks would be carried out together with the alliance. It was the President's message that this is "should be" that America does not quit its own ambition, but wants to base it on NATO's umbrella.
An crucial point of his message is the alleged Golden Dome, which is simply a giant rocket defence project, which is intended to cover both offshore installations and capture missiles placed in space. According to Trump's earlier announcements, it is the Arctic and Greenland that are to be a key component of this construction, an perfect place to defender the northern directions of threats and track possible rocket attacks on Europe and North America.
Trump does not cover that he cares about the top possible freedom of action. He speaks of the necessity of "doing precisely what we want" in Greenland, and stresses that the US is to have full military access to the island at no extra cost. At the same time, it ensures that this solution is better for both the United States and Europe. For any European capitals, however, this sounds more like an ultimatum than a partnership.
NATO pulled into the Arctic puzzle
The inclusion of NATO in the Greenland safety task has respective parallel functions. Formally, it is about strengthening the east and northern flanks of the alliance, at a time erstwhile Russia intensively militarizes the Arctic and China is trying to usage Arctic sea routes for its own purposes. Trump's declaration can legitimize American military presence on the island as an action "on behalf of all NATO", even if the most crucial decisions are made in Washington.
Denmark, the formal owner of Greenland, is besides no accident in the talks. It is Copenhagen that is de facto to decide how far American military presence can go. Trump suggests that "everyone is satisfied" with the direction of talks, but at the same time reserves that he will not give details until a twelve days later. specified time-extended communication gives him space to further force both on Denmark and on NATO partners who cannot openly ignore American plans.
What would the Golden Dome be?
In the White home vision, Greenland is to become a large hub of radar, sensors and launchers that will track and neutralize possible rocket attacks before they approach Europe or America. specified infrastructure would make a lasting, technological link between the US and the Arctic part of NATO – from Canada, through Iceland, to Norway. At the same time, however, it would make European safety even more dependent on American political and budgetary decisions. The Golden Dome would theoretically defend "the full West", but the button in the strategy would stay in Washington's hands.
That is why European spheres are not only delighted with the fresh shield, but besides with concerns. any politicians and experts inform that if Greenland actually becomes almost exclusively an American military project, it can break the balance in NATO and lead to conflicts within the alliance – from disputes over sovereignty of Denmark to questions about who controls fresh installations in space.
