There was a funny – and what I think was a fake – headline going around on social media recently that said something like "Denmark Demands That Germany and France Defend Greenland From U.S. Invasion." My husband and I had a quite a good laugh about that, even if it was fake, because Germany can't even keep its citizens warm during the winter and France is all talk when it comes to standing up to Donald Trump and the United States.
Then, a new headline emerged, a real one this time, and we laughed even harder at this one: "Greenland calls on NATO for protection from possible US invasion." It's a legitimate headline, and I even did a deep dig to confirm what was reported in the article.
It's all true. Greenland's prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, has made an appeal to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to commit to defending Greenland, an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, in the event Donald Trump actually decides to take the island by force. (For the record, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S. intends to purchase Greenland through diplomatic efforts, not launch a military invasion.)
Here's a bit of PM Nielsen's appeal to NATO, which was issued Monday:
“The United States has once again reiterated its desire to take over Greenland. This is something the government coalition in Greenland cannot accept under any circumstances.
Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. As a part of the Realm, Greenland is a member of NATO, and the defense of Greenland must therefore be insured through NATO.”
The funny part here, of course, is that Greenland is essentially asking the United States to defend it from the United States, and that's because the United States is NATO. We fund it, we lead it, and we decide where it goes.
Let's take a look at some facts.
- According to AP News, the United States spends far more than any other NATO ally, and allies are moving toward committing more of their GDPs only because of intense pressure from President Trump.
- At the 2025 NATO summit, the spending agreement came as the U.S. – a.k.a., NATO’s biggest spender – continues to shape the alliance's priorities.
- As AP has reported, "the United States is NATO’s most powerful member" and "spends much more on defense than any other ally," which demonstrates the alliance’s reliance on U.S. military might.
You get the idea.
It's ludicrous of Greenland to treat NATO like anything other than a military arm of the United States. And if European leaders didn't want it that way, they should have taken action a long time ago to shore up their own positions within the alliance. But, they were more than happy to have the U.S. foot most of the bill and shoulder most of the responsibility, so now they are stuck with the consequences of their own (in)actions.
Let's face it, ain't nobody coming to Greenland's rescue if Donald Trump actually decides to invade it.
But, Greenland's PM keeps rattling his ceremonial saber and jawing about it anyway, saying Tuesday, "If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark."
"If we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark," Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a news conference Tuesday in Copenhagen. "We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU."
You just know President Trump is laughing about Denmark's reliance on NATO/the U.S. for Greenland's defense. And he certainly won't be put off by Denmark's strongly-worded appeal. “We are going to do something on Greenland whether they like it or not because if we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor,” Trump has said.
Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and other Trump administration officials are expected to meet Wednesday with officials from Denmark and Greenland.