A veteran American diplomat is warning that President Donald Trump’s renewed talk of acquiring Greenland has entered dangerous territory.
Michael McFaul, the former U.S. ambassador to Russia, blasted Trump’s comments after the White House said that “utilizing the U.S. military is always an option” when it comes to acquiring the Arctic territory.
Trump has reiterated his interest in Greenland in recent days as his rhetoric has grown increasingly aggressive on the world stage. His lackeys, like White House aide Stephen Miller, have also taken to the networks to reiterate the president’s imperialist desires.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly told lawmakers this week that Trump is open to purchasing, rather than invading, Greenland, a large island in the North Atlantic Ocean.
The White House seemed to confirm Rubio’s comments in a statement given to Reuters. Trump and his team are “discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal,” it said, failing to rule out a military intervention. “Of course, utilizing the U.S. military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” it went on. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also said on Tuesday that the military option was on the table.
Greenland, home to about 56,000 people, is an autonomous territory of Denmark, a NATO ally of the United States. The suggestion that Washington could use force to acquire it immediately raised alarms about the stability of the alliance.
Appearing on MSNBC’s The 11th Hour, McFaul was asked by host Stephanie Ruhle whether such a move would amount to one NATO country attacking another.
“If the United States takes Greenland by force, would that not be one NATO country going after another?” Ruhle asked. “And if that takes place, wouldn’t that be the end of the NATO alliance? That feels monumental to me.”
“I can’t stress enough how completely insane this idea is on so many levels,” McFaul responded. He argued that there is no strategic need for such an action and said the United States already has broad access to Greenland through existing agreements.
“First of all, there is no national security interest that we need to seize Greenland. They have not made the case,” he said. “We can have as many soldiers there as we want. We have bases there. I worked in the government. I know how we’ve used Greenland before. We can do that through negotiation.”
“There is no reason to go back to 19th-century imperialism,” McFaul added, agreeing that a forced takeover would effectively destroy NATO.
“Not only would it blow up NATO, it would alienate the United States from the entire world, from the democratic world, the free world, the autocratic world,” he said. “And then we will empower countries like China. ‘Well, if they can take Greenland, of course we can take Taiwan.’”
McFaul concluded bluntly: “It’s the craziest idea I’ve ever heard of.”
Danish politicians, too, are perturbed by the idea. Anders Vistisen MEP, the man who told Trump to “f–k off” the last time he publicly lusted over Denmark, told the Daily Beast earlier this week: “The Trump circle have made their desire known for some time; to have their approach firmly rejected by the people of Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark.
“If Trump were to make a move on Greenland, he would make the USA an international pariah state worse than Venezuela or North Korea.”
Danis Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen demanded that Trump stop his threats to annex the island. “I strongly urge the United States to cease its threats against a historically close ally, and against another country and another people who have stated very clearly that they are not for sale,” she said.
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