The post-Cold War era, often referred to as the Peace Dividend, has now come to an end, with the US turning away from the European security burden against an overtly exaggerated Russian threat. This breakup in transatlantic relations is not an immediate incident but rather a follow-up to persistent tensions, demands, and dissatisfying results. Ranging from economic entanglements to threat perception, the European countries, in particular the NATO members, have developed sharp divergences with each other. The western, central, eastern, and southern flanks of NATO are now representing a quagmire and have further disrupted the so-called alliance cohesion. 

With the revival of President Trump in 2025, the all-weather partnership of the transatlantic alliance is over, and the era of European strategic autonomy has begun. From years of struggle with burden sharing, the debate is now completely shifted towards burden shifting, with Europe taking care of itself. The newly released National Security Strategy (NSS) under the Trump 2.0 administration clearly stated that Europe is at the brink of civilizational erasure, which cannot be taken as a major security ally, as it is now threatening Western civilization itself. With Trump 2.0 imposing serious tariffs on its European partners, the matter has now reached the point of European sovereignty, self-respect, and territorial integrity, with the US practically demanding the annexation of Greenland – a protectorate of Denmark.

Greenland became a colony of Denmark in the 18th century and maintained the status quo for about two centuries. The United States played a major role in the geopolitical aspect of the region by having Greenland strategically governed during World War II when Nazi Germany occupied Denmark. After the defeat of Germany, the US administration asked the Danish authorities to sell Greenland to the US, which was bluntly rejected by Denmark. In 1953, Greenland’s colonial status ended, and it became an integral part of the Kingdom of Denmark. 

The US has long been eyeing this small but strategically significant territory of the Arctic. From the late 1860s to 2026, various US administrations have shown interest in buying the territory of Greenland from Denmark. Thus, the Trump 2.0 demand is a precedent for this. But the geopolitical situation and the regional security architecture make it quite evident........

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