Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has firmly countered recent threats from former U.S. President Donald Trump regarding potential U.S. military intervention in Greenland, signaling a rising tension over Arctic strategic interests. Wadephul, in an interview with Bild am Sonntag, acknowledged the escalating geopolitical significance of the Arctic region, highlighting the competing interests of Russia and China. He emphasized that the matter of Greenland’s sovereignty remains exclusively within the purview of Denmark and Greenland themselves.
Wadephul announced plans to discuss a joint NATO strategy with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during an upcoming visit to Washington, implicitly countering Trump’s aggressive stance. The discussion will center on securing the region while upholding the principle of national sovereignty.
The Social Democratic Party (SPD) parliamentary group is advocating for a more assertive European response to Trump’s pronouncements. SPD foreign policy spokesperson Adis Ahmetovic urged Europe to resist intimidation, calling for a united front to “stop” Trump’s actions and demanding “clarity”. Ahmetovic cited Brazilian President Lula’s success in employing trade measures to compel concessions from Trump as a potential model for European action.
The CDU/CSU parliamentary group’s foreign policy spokesperson, Jürgen Hardt, condemned Trump’s claims as “arrogant and contrary to American interests” suggesting they are actively undermining support within the U.S. Congress. Simultaneously, Hardt proposed a potential German military presence around Greenland as a matter of NATO consensus, contingent on the agreement of Denmark, Greenland and other allies. He criticized the apparent contradiction in Trump’s repeated calls for increased burden-sharing within NATO while simultaneously asserting sole U.S. responsibility for Arctic security. Positioning a Bundeswehr presence as a collective NATO mission, Hardt argued, would alleviate the load on U.S. forces.
The debate underscores a growing divergence between U.S. and European perspectives on Arctic security and the delicate balance of sovereignty in a region increasingly of strategic interest to global powers.
