Donald Trump's desire to subsume Greenland into United States territory has set a precedent for other world leaders, a political commentator has said.
Sabrina Haake believes the president's rhetoric and subsequent actions against Greenland and NATO members will only bolster the likes of Vladimir Putin. Writing in her Substack, Haake suggested the tensions between Trump's administration and Denmark are empowering Russia's aims in Ukraine.
She wrote, "Russia is hyperventilating with excitement. Breathlessly describing a scenario in which 'one NATO member is going to attack another NATO member,' Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted earlier this week that, 'It was hard to imagine before that such a thing could happen.'"
"Lavrov said Trump’s threats against Greenland 'have upended' the Western concept of the 'rule-based global order,' a concept Putin has long loathed."
Haake went on to say Trump's comments on Greenland and disinterest in NATO's long-standing protection of peace in the Western hemisphere had an immediate impact, not on Greenland, but on Ukraine.
She wrote, "Putin knows that Trump’s threats against Greenland have permanently debunked the west’s criticism of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Greenlanders may pay the price for Trump’s insanity in the near future, but Ukrainians are paying for it today.
"By creating a vacuum where the rule of international law and respect for sovereignty once reigned, Trump has invited all rogue actors—not just Putin—to do their worst."
Haake also suggested the threat against Greenland was a wider threat to Europe and NATO, with decades-old relationships with countries across the globe put at risk by the president's comments.
She added, "By threatening Greenland, an semi-autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, Trump is issuing a direct threat against Europe and NATO, deliberately weakening the alliance that fought to defeat Hitler and fascism in WWII. Apparently Trump considers attacks against fascism generally, and attacks against Hitler specifically, too on the nose to let pass."