NATO there are hundreds and hundreds of pages of detailed military plans on how to defend against attack, but all deterrence and defense scenarios have always implied - an external enemy.
There is no playbook on how to deal with heightened presidential threats Trampa to take over the allied territory at any cost. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte's strategy so far has been to remain silent, but that will not be able to last for long, he assesses Deutsche says.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen tried to curb American ambitions by warning that, "if the US decides to militarily attack another NATO country, then everything stops, including NATO, and thus the security that has been established since the end of World War II."
The current situation - the realization of the dream of the Soviet leaders
But even before any military moves occur—or perhaps before them—the impact of escalating rhetoric should not be underestimated.
"It's a huge victory for Putin that we're having this discussion at all," noted Patrik Oksanen, a senior fellow at the Stockholm Free World Forum, adding that the current situation within the alliance is a dream come true for Soviet leaders.
"Here in the far north, we take it quite seriously, especially since these statements came so soon after Venezuela and were further reinforced not only by President Trump, but also by his adviser [Stephen] Mueller," who questioned Denmark's sovereignty over Greenland and whether any European troops would even oppose the US.
The uproar was heightened by a social media post by Miller's wife, Katie, which showed a map of Greenland overlaid with an American flag and the word "Soon."
Ed Arnold of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), himself a former official at NATO's military headquarters, agrees that the alliance is already being "damaged".
"It's an alliance built on values and trust," Arnold told DW, so "even getting to this point has weakened the alliance." The very idea of conducting consultations on this matter in NATO would be bad for "optics" reasons, he added, because it would mean that "32 allies are sitting at the table, and the main challenge and threat comes from someone at that same table."
Some observers suggest that one solution could be for European NATO members to send troops to Greenland, to show Trump that they take his defense seriously and that any unilateral deployment of US forces would be unnecessary.
The director of the European Union Institute for Security Studies, Stephen Evert, believes that such an initiative can be useful, but only if it is guided by appropriate reasons. "Europeans should take Arctic security seriously," he said, "and if there are gaps, we should try to fill them."
However, he warned that it should not be approached as an attempt to appease Trump, as it has already been shown that such attempts "do not work".
"Folks, this is not an exercise. This is not something you can just wait and hope it gets better. This is only going to change if we take decisive steps to defend our positions — not aggressively, we're not going to fight the US military over Greenland if it comes to that — but we have to be very, very clear about how we see the future of Greenland, the future of the alliance and everything that goes with it."
Danish right-winger against Trump
Anders Vistissen, a Danish member of the European Parliament, agrees with Evert and believes that Europe should "stop playing diplomatic games, giving in, trying to convince the US to be more reasonable or appease it with increased military investments in the Arctic or granting mining concessions in Greenland, or anything else that has been talked about."
Although Vistissen's political leanings, as a member of the right-wing Danish People's Party, might lead one to think he would agree with Trump on some issues, the lawmaker actually made headlines a year ago - and caused a storm - when he used an expletive to tell Trump what he might do with his intention to buy Greenland.
He tells DW that he promised not to repeat the phrase publicly, but that he still stands by that opinion and his tactic of using open language to make it clear to Washington that his position is unacceptable.
"We are in a moment that is so serious that there is no room for doubt or any maneuvering in our communication," Vistissen said. "We need to have a very strong and absolutely clear response and tell the US administration and President Trump: no, you will not have any rights or claims to Greenland, and you will not persuade, pressure or intimidate us to do otherwise."
Vistissen says that while he appreciates the statements of support from other European leaders, he doesn't believe they would actually send troops to Greenland. He expects his prime minister to provide a strong enough defense. "This is a matter that must be resolved between the Kingdom of Denmark and the US administration," he said.
Danish leftist - we are ready to use weapons
Per Klausen, from the ranks of the Left, believes that the other side of Brussels could have the power to influence this situation. Clausen sent a letter to his colleagues in the European Parliament proposing to suspend approval of the tariff deal - widely seen as favoring the US - until Washington gives up Greenland.
"If we accept this agreement while Trump threatens the international order and makes direct territorial claims against Denmark," Clausen's letter said, "it will be seen as a reward for his action and will only add fuel to the fire."
"We have a lot that we could do that would hurt the U.S. very seriously, if we're talking about the economy," Claussen said.
"And I think we have to make it absolutely clear to the United States that we are ready to use those weapons if the US does not stop its aggression against Greenland."
Klausen, speaking to DW, says that his fellow citizens are "very, very angry", rather than scared. He hopes that his proposal will gain enough political weight to make the US pay attention, that is, to "realize that Denmark is not isolated in this situation and that European leaders are not only talking about solidarity with Denmark and Greenland, but are also ready to act."
Can EU pressure save NATO?
Steven Evert says he sees at least one encouraging sign in that. During a meeting in Paris, held as part of the "Coalition of the Willing" to support Ukraine, the leaders of Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom joined Danish Prime Minister Metta Frederiksen in a joint statement in which they emphasized that "it is up to Denmark and Greenland — and only them — to decide on issues concerning Denmark and Greenland."
They issued the statement shortly before a meeting with US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, with European leaders not shying away from the potential conflict such a move could cause, or its impact on US support for European efforts on Ukraine.
While this step may seem small, Evert says it "made it clear how seriously" leaders take this threat.
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