Robert Brieger, the European Union’s top military official, stated in a Saturday interview with Germany’s Welt am Sonntag that it would be logical to station EU troops in Greenland, amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s expressed interest in acquiring the Danish territory.
“In my view, it would make perfect sense not only to station U.S. forces in Greenland, as has been the case to date, but also to consider stationing EU troops there in the future,” the chairman of the European Union Military Committee said.
Political Decision Required
Ultimately, such a step would require a political decision, the Austrian-born general said. The military committee is the highest military office of the European Council, but it serves as a consultative body since the bloc has no dedicated army.
U.S.-led NATO is the main military alliance for the EU.
Although Greenland is not part of the EU as an overseas territory of Denmark, Europeans, as well as the U.S. have interests in Greenland, the general added, citing its raw materials and strategic location.
“However, with increasing ice melt as a result of climate change, this also creates a certain potential for tension with Russia and possibly China,” he said.
Trump’s Greenland Bid
Trump has expressed an interest in making Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark, part of the United States. He has not ruled out using military or economic power to persuade Denmark to hand it over.
Greenland’s strategic location along the shortest route from Europe to North America, vital for the U.S. ballistic missile warning system, has made it a priority for Trump.
Brieger said he hoped that the U.S. as a member of the United Nations would respect the inviolability of borders as stipulated in the U.N. Charter.
Greenland ‘Not For Sale’
Greenland is not for sale, the island’s Prime Minister Mute Egede said in December, responding to Trump’s comments regarding the “ownership and control” of the vast Arctic island that has been part of Denmark for over 600 years.
“Greenland is ours. We are not for sale and will never be for sale. We must not lose our long struggle for freedom,” Egede said in a written comment.
(With inputs from Reuters)
