DID Press: The Financial Times reports that recent tensions between Europe and the United States over Greenland have pushed European leaders to consider an unprecedented scenario: the potential weakening of—or even U.S. withdrawal from—NATO.
According to the report, long-standing trust in NATO’s collective defense commitment—particularly the central role of the United States—has been seriously shaken.
NATO has, since its founding, been built on the assumption that its members, above all the United States, would come to the defense of any ally under attack, the newspaper writes. However, public doubts voiced by U.S. President Donald Trump about NATO’s effectiveness and Washington’s defense commitments have called this assumption into question.
Ivo Daalder, former U.S. ambassador to NATO, described Trump’s threats to seize Greenland—part of Danish territory—as a crisis “worse than anything seen in NATO’s 77-year history.” He said such statements have undermined trust among allies to an unprecedented degree.
Meanwhile, Rachel Ellehuus, head of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London, warned that “the damage done and the doubts surrounding the credibility of U.S. commitments have now become an undercurrent in transatlantic relations.
”Several European officials are now calling for a more serious debate on building an independent European security architecture. Andrius Kubilius, the European Union’s Commissioner for Defence and Space, told the Financial Times: “We need a clear strategy to replace all U.S. military capabilities in terms of Europe’s material defense readiness.
”He added that beyond military capabilities, Europe must also engage in broader discussions about “institutional defense preparedness” and strengthen the concept of a “European pillar within NATO.
”Kubilius stressed that “now is the right time for these debates, and they must be pursued with far greater seriousness.