Former US Vice President Mike Pence has joined a growing chorus of Republicans criticising Donald Trump's calls to seize Greenland, warning that the move could fracture relations with Nato allies. Pence told CNN's State of the Union that Denmark is 'a very strong ally' and that the current posture threatens to damage ties not just with Copenhagen but with the entire alliance.
Republican senators Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski, who recently travelled to Denmark with a bipartisan delegation, also voiced strong opposition. Murkowski described Trump's threatened tariffs on European countries as 'unnecessary, punitive, and a profound mistake', arguing they push allies away and play into Vladimir Putin's hands by diverting Nato resources to Greenland. Tillis called the tariffs 'bad for America' and said coercive action to seize an ally's territory is 'beyond stupid'.
House member Michael McCaul warned on ABC's This Week that a military invasion of Greenland would 'turn Nato on its very head' and effectively abolish the alliance. Senator Rand Paul dismissed the urgency, calling the portrayal of Greenland as a security threat 'ridiculous'.
Trump has argued that US control of Greenland is necessary to counter Russian and Chinese influence in the Arctic, and has floated options ranging from purchase to military takeover. However, polling shows a substantial majority of Americans oppose taking control of the island, and the bipartisan delegation to Denmark aimed to emphasise Republican dissent.
